


A Kiss

by coinseller



Series: “Park Jihoon is handsome” – Lai Guanlin (a collection of panwink short stories) [6]
Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: A LOT OF KISSING OML /SWEATS, Fluff, M/M, Romance, ages r upped but shit stays APPROPRIATE, guanlin is a thief who just wants his HEART, half a teaspoon of angst, jihoon is a police officer, robber au, so now u have to read the fic in order to find out what it is, this is based off a manga that im not gonna write in the tags cuz i dont wanna look like a weeb, which is some high IQ clickbait ;)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-05-01 14:42:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14522853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coinseller/pseuds/coinseller
Summary: For 2 years, Inspector Park Jihoon has been trying to apprehend a mysterious, masked thief who goes by the alias Grey. And although Grey has never actually gotten away with any of the valuables he sets out to take, the thief always manages to steal something else by the end of the day (Hint: the title).





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god. wait. uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh fuk ok disclaimer: there are a lot of plot holes in this story and im actually irl too stupid to fix them so don’t @ me LOLLL  
> ANYWAY an anon on my cc requested for a robber au so here we go uwu I hope u enjoy despite the fact that my brain isn’t big enough to come up with cool crime chases or fully comprehend what being a police officer/inspector is like LOL :’DD  
> HONESTLY THO, ITS WHATEVER LMAOO WE”RE JUST HERE FOR SOME SPICY PANWINK SO FUCK MY LOW IQ PLOT AND LETS GET THIS SHIT ROLLING
> 
> Ages (but it doesn’t really change too much): Jihoon: 25, Guanlin: 22, Jinyoung: 23, Minhyun: 31

**[PROLOGUE]**

 

_“At approximately 1:35AM, local police received news that the notorious thief we’ve come to know as Grey, has broken into the national museum and stolen a precious artifact—an invaluable ruby ring from the Joseon Dynasty. The current status of the ring is unknown and the current status of the thief is unknown. Officials have yet to provide us with information regarding the—”_

 

The radio abruptly cuts off when the police car comes to a screeching halt right outside of the Korean National Museum.

 

“We’re here.”

 

“Thank you,” An inspector by the name of Bae Jinyoung hastily replies. With that, he collects his things and scrambles out of the vehicle.

 

Instantly upon stepping onto the museum grounds, he is hit by a strong gust of wind and a wave of shock when the sheer weight of the situation he finds himself in settles deep in the pit of his stomach. He’s stunned where he stands.

 

Jinyoung thinks that the scene looks straight out of a movie, with countless of spotlights shining at each entrance of the museum and officers positioned by every door. Helicopters circle above the perimeter—both official and newscasting alike—with lines of police cars and barricades surrounding the area.

 

Upon seeing the young man, reporters and local bystanders scurry around him and begin to shove microphones and cameras in his face, launching question after question at him.

 

 _“Officer! What is the current status of the ring?”_ A female voice shouts at him from his left.

 

 _“Sir, do you think that you’ll finally be able to capture Grey?”_ Another voice asks him to his right.

 

_“Is there anything you can tell us about the—”_

 

He mutes their calls to his ears and begins to push his way through the masses of people. “Excuse me, pardon me—” The inspector politely urges as he squeezes through bodies, clutching his documents to his chest. The whole ordeal is chaotic and suffocating, and Jinyoung is everything _but_ used to this sort of commotion considering it was only recently that he graduated from the police academy and taken in as an inspector in training. It’s still all very overwhelming to him, and he isn’t entirely sure what he should be doing, but that doesn’t stop the reporters from throwing even more questions at him as he trudges his way to the museum.

 

Before he can make it to the first line of caution tape, one voice stands out above the rest and the newscaster yells, _“It’s been two years since the beginning of Grey’s robberies and the police still has yet to catch him. Do you have a statement as to why it’s taken this long?”_

 

And at this, Jinyoung finally turns around and gives her a standard reply, his tone sharp with irritation, “As of right now, I don’t have anything more to share than what has already been disclosed. We’ll provide more information after the situation is taken care of,” He then nods. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

 

The response, however, only generates more questions from the press. But Jinyoung keeps his mouth shut and only speaks again when he shows his newly printed ID badge to an officer standing by the roped off area. “Inspector Bae Jinyoung,” He introduces himself. “I have clearance into this section.”

 

The officer reads over his badge and nods affirmatively, “Right this way,” He says, “The chief is at the front. He’s waiting for you.”

 

“Thank you,” He tells the other before stepping through the barrier. He breathes a sigh of relief once he’s made it out of the mess of reporters and clutches his documents protectively to his chest when another hard gust of Autumn wind hits him from the side. With a newfound composure, he makes his way up to the chief, Hwang Minhyun, a tall man in his early 30’s and, as Jinyoung has come to discover, is a stickler for cleanliness and order.

 

And this situation is everything but clean and in order.

 

He easily finds the other because he sticks out wearing his signature, long trench coat; the flaps unbuttoned and fluttering in the wind with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. And upon closer inspection, Jinyoung catches an impatient expression painted onto the elder’s handsome features, but it quickly fades upon seeing the younger. “Ah, Jinyoung,” The chief greets him. And even though he has shout in order to be heard above the roaring helicopters, there’s a softness to his tone. “It’s good to see you’ve arrived.”

 

“Sorry, I’m not quite accustomed to waking up at this hour yet,” Jinyoung apologizes. “But I got here as fast as I could.”

 

“I’ll let it slide this time, but you better start getting used to it. This happens a lot,” He adds bitterly.

 

“Sir?”

 

The chief lets out a chuckle. “Don’t look so worried—it appears a lot worse than it really is. We have a few squads in there already, so everything should be under control,” Minhyun assures him. “This is your first time dealing with Grey, right?”

 

Jinyoung nods. But even though this _is_ technically his first time as an officer during an infamous Grey robbery, he already knows what to expect because this definitely isn’t the first time he’s heard of him.

 

He opens his folder of documents and flips to a particular case file with too many listed offenses and not enough information regarding the thief.

 

Two years ago, Grey made his first appearance at a local bank, and ever since then has shown up in various locations—from museums to reserves, all differing on the monetary scale. The police have yet to catch him, and even have yet to take a clear photograph of him; the only one which they have is clipped to the front of his case file. There’s nothing really out of the ordinary about him, and actually, Jinyoung thinks that there’s something almost charming to the thief.

 

Although the picture is blurred, Jinyoung can make out a tall, slender figure with dark hair and a gently angled jaw. He wears the same thing every time; black slacks and a matching black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to expose identical white gloves. And on his face dawns the infamous grey mask, cutting off right at his cheekbones to only reveal a pair of glimmering eyes and a mischievous smirk that no one has seen up close except for one particular officer.

 

“Is Inspector Park Jihoon in there too?” Jinyoung asks.

 

“Yes.” Minhyun’s answer is curt—the younger knows exactly why— _“He is.”_

 

Jinyoung nods wordlessly and follows the chief’s gaze towards the entrance of the museum.

 

See, calling Grey a thief is both appropriate, yet a stretch. With the news following Grey’s robberies always comes the same report: Grey steals something of immeasurable value, the police swoop in to apprehend the wanted criminal, and even though they’ve tried countless of strategies and plans of attack, only one person is ever able to come in contact with Grey and he _always_ retrieves the missing items.

 

And that person is none other than Park Jihoon.

 

“I wonder what he’s doing,” Jinyoung mentions after a few moments of silence.

 

 Minhyun lets out a sigh. “Who knows,” He breathes in exhaustion, frowning. “I just hope that this time, he actually manages to catch Grey.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**[PART I]**

 

Somewhere deep within the museum, a loud clanging rattles above the sound of wailing sirens and echoes all throughout an empty exhibit room where a statue of a historical king stands.

 

It’s a massive statue— _obnoxiously so_ —and behind its grand stature hides two people who are an officer and a thief.

 

“RELEASE ME,” Jihoon demands through gritted teeth. He yanks hard on his wrist cuffed securely to the railing behind him, and the sound rings through the halls once more.

 

“They’re _your_ cuffs,” A teasing voice replies, “I think we’ve been in this situation enough times for you to at least remember to bring an extra set of keys.”

 

Jihoon sputters in flustered annoyance and turns to glare at the masked figure standing before him.

 

It’s infuriating, really, how Grey manages to get him in the same position every time. No matter what Jihoon does or how many tricks he has up his sleeve, the thief always seems to be one step ahead of him, seeing right through his every single ploy. And just like now, Jihoon is down to his last trick—or rather— _was_ down to his last trick when he had his extra set of keys shoved deep into the bottom of his shoe.

 

Jihoon glowers and fumes internally, _‘HOW on EARTH did Grey manage to find out he had his spares in his stupid fucking shoe—'_

 

“You put less pressure on your right foot,” Grey suddenly says.

 

 _“What?”_ Jihoon spits.

 

“When you were chasing me down the hall,” Grey elaborates. Jihoon realizes he’s answering his question. “The sound of your footsteps from your right foot are always louder than the left, but this time they weren’t. So I assumed there was either something wrong with your leg or there was something in your shoe, but with the way you kicked me back in the lobby I figured your leg was perfectly fine and working _spectacularly_ at that,” He adds with a wince, rubbing the back of his thigh.

 

However, Jihoon ignores him and instead asks, _“Can you read minds??”_

 

Grey is quiet for a few moments before he snorts and bursts out into laughter.

 

“I’M BEING SERIOUS!!” Jihoon blurts with his face boiling red. There was no way the other could have figured out the question he was _just_ thinking and, to further defend his outburst, it’d also explain how Grey was always gaining the upper hand on him.

 

“It’s cute that you think I can read minds,” He mentions with a chuckle. And at this, Jihoon feels his skin simmer even warmer. “But no, I can’t, sorry to disappoint. I guess I’m just very… observative.”

 

Jihoon huffs.

 

They stand in silence for a long while, letting the weight of the situation return to its full scale before the inspector finally demands, growling under his breath, “Okay, that’s enough of this. Give back the ring, Grey.”

 

“Not without my usual payment,” He responds with a sly grin.

 

Jihoon stomach flops at the sound of this and his heartbeat stutters in his chest. He gulps dryly and forces himself to remain impassive when he asks, “What do you want?” But it’s more of a stalling tactic than an actual question.

 

“It’s the same thing every time,” Grey tells him. “Have you already forgotten? It’s only been three weeks since the last time we saw each other.”

 

Jihoon knows what he wants, but he’s too embarrassed to admit it. He doesn’t make a move to reply to the other, but it’s then that the sound of voices begin to pick up in the hallway and footsteps storm closer to the exhibit room they’re hidden in.

 

“The clock’s ticking,” Grey hums, twirling the ruby between his fingers. “And you know I’m not dumb enough to get caught no matter how long we wait.”

 

Jihoon grits his teeth in frustration and gives his cuffed wrist a few more yanks, testing to see if they’ll come loose, which, of course, they won’t.

 

_He’s stuck._

 

Glancing nervously between the closed door and the thief standing before him, he wracks his brain and inevitably finds that there’s only two ways this can end; either with both Grey _and_ the artifact gone, or just Grey. He doesn’t want the officers to find out what he does with the other in order to get the stolen items back, and he _knows_ that the thief will just escape if he doesn’t accept to his terms; which is a bigger loss than if he just agrees.

 

So, he gives in.

 

_Like he always does._

 

“Fine,” Jihoon murmurs in a huff.

 

With a glimmer in his eyes, Grey takes a step towards the shorter officer and waits for him to make the first move. Which, Jihoon thinks, is a polite gesture considering the circumstances. It gives him a chance to refuse him, or a chance to attack considering how open Grey leaves himself. But, alas, he’s tried many things in their past and he knows that the safest outcome is to just lean in and give the other what he wants.

 

And it’s nothing bad, really. It’s not even _worth_ that much too.

 

So with a defeated sigh, Jihoon rises up on his tippy-toes, screws his eyes shut, and presses his lips to the thief’s waiting ones.

 

And at the sensation, his breath catches in his throat.

 

There’s something about kissing Grey, no matter how many times he’s done it, the feeling always seems new to him.

 

His stomach bubbles with butterflies and his heart beats forcefully against his windpipe. Jihoon feels light as air with Grey’s soft, plush lips pressed gently against his, moving in a way that’s so delicate, Jihoon shudders and chokes up a gasp. He knits his eyebrows together in dazed confusion and fists his free hand into the black silk of the taller’s shirt, steadying himself. At this, Grey smiles against his lips, pushing forward ever slightly to deepen it, and Jihoon unknowingly complies.

 

In reality, the kiss is chaste and quick, yet it feels like it lasts an eternity, leaving Jihoon dizzy where he stands with a little part of him wanting to see what would happen if he asked for more. When they break apart, he hopes that the taller doesn’t notice how his legs buckle in, or that he’s short on air; lost for words.

 

Grey sighs, and the smile that’s painted on his lips blossoms even wider.

 

For the few moments following their kiss, Jihoon is winded and stunned, but when a spark of sense comes floating back to him, he quickly reaches up with his uncuffed hand and tries to grab for Grey’s mask, only to have his wrist caught in the taller’s grip.

 

Jihoon hisses.

 

“As always, Inspector, it’s a pleasure working with you,” Grey whispers before taking the officer’s hand and sliding the ruby ring onto his finger. He places a kiss to Jihoon’s fingertips in a farewell, and watches as the shorter turns all kinds of red.

 

“GET BACK HERE, GREY!!” Jihoon yells, watching the other’s retreating form, trying to charge at him. But his bound arm keeps him from going anywhere and all he can do is wallow in flustered embarrassment, breathing heavily through his nose. He doesn’t trust his voice to say anything more.

 

“I’ll see you soon,” Grey promises him.

 

But before Jihoon can shout, a flash of smoke fills the area.

 

When it dissipates the thief is gone.

 

And the only evidence Grey was ever at the museum that night, is the tingling sensation on Jihoon’s lips and the rapid fluttering of his heart.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A newspaper is dropped in Jihoon’s line of vision and the title reads:

_Inspector Park Jihoon Retrieves the Missing Artifact_

_Grey Still Nowhere to be Found_

 

Jihoon winces.

 

“Do you have anything to say?” His boss, the chief, questions him. And although Minhyun’s voice is smooth and polite, Jihoon can sense a bit of irritation hidden in his words.

 

A remorseful feeling gnaws at the inspector’s chest, knowing that he can’t tell Minhyun the real reason why or how he was able to retrieve the ring and fail to capture Grey yet again. It’s embarrassing, both because he should be good enough to apprehend the other and because he bribes the thief with a kiss in order to retrieve everything he’s ever stolen. So, all Jihoon tells the chief is, “He got away.”

 

“Again?” Minhyun asks with a sharpness in his tone, it causes the younger to flinch. “Jihoon, I trust you, and know you’re trying your best to arrest him, but this is really starting to look bad on us as a police force.”

 

“I got the ring back,” Jihoon mumbles in his defense.

 

“I know, but how many times are we going to let Grey slip away?” He shoots back. “I’m happy that you were able to retrieve the artifact, believe me, we all are. But if we can’t catch one measly thief, what is the public supposed to make of the police? How are we supposed to ensure the safety of our community if we can’t prove to them that we’re capable enough to catch _one_ guy?”

 

Jihoon sighs in defeat and slumps back in his desk chair. At the sight of this, the chief softens and rests his hand on the younger’s shoulder.

 

“Like I said Jihoon, I trust you. But the public doesn’t know you like I do, and people are starting to think that we’re just letting him get away,” Minhyun explains gently. “I’ll talk to the sergeant again, but we’re really counting on you to bring him in. You’re the only one he’s ever talked to.”

 

With that reminder, Minhyun squeezes his shoulder and gives it a hearty pat before walking away. Once his boss is fully back in his office, Jihoon groans and slams his face into his desk.

 

“Fuck you, Grey,” He grumbles.

 

“You good?” A new voice asks. Jihoon instantly recognizes him to be Jinyoung, the Inspector fresh from the academy, and as of now, his underling until he learns the ropes.

 

“No,” Jihoon replies flatly.

 

At this, Jinyoung snickers and places a cup of coffee in front of him. “For your troubles,” He says.

 

“Oh my god, Jinyoung, you’re an angel,” Jihoon whimpers, taking the cup and chugging it down. It’s a vanilla latte, _his favorite_ , and it’s even better since it’s also from Jihoon’s favorite coffee shop located a few blocks down from the station—one that he hasn’t been able to walk down to in a while considering how busy the chief keeps him recently. But thanks to Jinyoung and his lack of formal experience, his workload is light, so he often offers to get the elder his daily fix of caffeine.

 

Yet, Jihoon wishes that he could free up his schedule enough to go back to the café. He rather likes the atmosphere of the place.

 

Stubbornly, Jihoon closes his eyes and takes another long sip from his coffee, trying to simulate the feeling that he’s actually _in_ the coffee shop, but his delusions are crushed when Jinyoung starts snapping his finger in his face.

 

“Stop doing that,” He says. “You look stupid.”

 

“Thanks,” Jihoon frowns. He thinks if he didn’t have a history with Jinyoung dating all the way back to the younger’s first year at the police academy, he would have punched him.

 

Jinyoung snickers and seats himself on top of Jihoon’s desk, kicking his legs and thrumming his fingers against the dark wood. It’s quiet for a few moments before the younger speaks up again.

 

“So… _Grey,”_ He mentions.

 

“Ugh. What about him,” Jihoon grumbles into his vanilla latte before taking a long swig.

 

“Is that what the chief was talking to you about?”

 

“That’s all he _ever_ talks to me about.”

 

Jinyoung hums and nods, chewing on his bottom lip in thought. He looks like he has something on his mind, so Jihoon urges him to speak up.

 

“What’s he like?” is what the younger asks.

 

 _“Excuse me?”_ Jihoon spits almost offendedly. The other makes it sound like he was asking about a close friend rather than a criminal.

 

“It’s just a question!” Jinyoung replies, holding his hands up in surrender. “I’m just curious, is all. You’re the only person who’s ever managed to talk to Grey and I’ve been watching the news ever since he’s shown up. _It’s_ —they never have anything concrete to say about him and even his case file is practically empty.”

 

Jihoon sighs and begrudgingly thinks for a moment, reflecting on all the encounters he’s had with the strange thief up until this point.

 

He recalls first time that he met him; Jihoon was still a rookie inspector who made a rookie mistake and got separated from his squad. But, consequentially, that’s how he found Grey.

 

He remembers staring bewildered at the other as he shoved wads upon wads of cash into a dark backpack, which he secured tightly to his shoulders when the officer came into the picture.

 

Upon seeing the thief, Jihoon demanded for the money back, threatening to use force if he had to. But his efforts were useless and he was quickly outsmarted by the other; tied up by his hands and legs with rope after the whole debacle.

 

It was humiliating and above all, frustrating. He remembers the feeling of his stomach dropping as he watched the thief walk away with everything, and all Jihoon could do was grovel in his restraints and shout. He’d trained for years to become an inspector—ever since he was a kid, it was his dream. Infuriated tears welled up in his eyes, but before the thief could fully make his escape, he stopped and turned to him…

 

_“I’ll return all this money in exchange for something else,” He told the inspector, walking back and crouching by his tied-up figure._

_“What do you want?” Jihoon growled at him._

_“A kiss.”_

At first, Jihoon thought he was crazy and laughed bitterly in his face, calling him a liar. But it was then that something changed in the other’s demeanor and the thief was quick to apologize for suggesting the exchange. And with that, he got up and began to walk away again…

 

_“WAIT!!” Jihoon cried. And the other immediately paused. “Y-You’re being serious? You’ll give back everything if I kiss you?”_

_The thief turned around and although he remained impassive, his voice was timid when he replied with a soft, “Yeah.”_

_Jihoon bit his lower lip in deliberation, quickly deciding there was really no harm in giving him what he wanted. Honestly, it was either Jihoon fulfilled his request and potentially retrieve the money, or he does nothing at all and lose everything._

_And besides, it was just a harmless kiss._

_“Fine. Deal,” Jihoon agreed._

 

After that night, Jihoon was left with every single bit of stolen money, a confused feeling in his chest, and one name he’d come to be familiar with for the next two years of his life: _Grey._

 

And from then on, it was history.

 

The next robbery happened about a month and a half later, and all the robberies that followed occurred within shorter gaps of time. Soon enough, Grey would appear almost every other week, and their game of cat and mouse would continue. Yet every single time Jihoon thought he had the upper hand, Grey would somehow manage to get the inspector alone and request for his usual kiss in exchange for whatever he’d stolen.

 

And at this point, Jihoon isn’t too sure if he’s the cat or if he’s the mouse, reflecting on how many times he’s fallen into the other’s traps.

 

With all things considered, Jihoon, in short, doesn’t really know what to truthfully make of Grey.

 

He’s a mystery, if anything. Why would he go out of his way to steal things if he’d always just give it back in exchange for something so trivial—something as innocent as a kiss?

 

Jihoon is torn because although Grey is considered a thief, he’s never actually stolen anything asides from a little, insignificant peck. It’s infuriating, yes, but Jihoon can’t bring himself to fully despise the other. Rather, he just doesn’t understand him enough to have a solid opinion.

 

“He’s annoying,” is all Jihoon answers Jinyoung with before downing the rest of his coffee. And _that_ he means with his entire being.

 

Jinyoung laughs. “I’m pretty sure we all already knew that.”

 

But Jihoon knows that Jinyoung barely even comprehends the surface of what he truly means.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The news of Grey’s attempted robbery eventually dies down after the first few weeks, as per usual. But shortly after that stretch of peace, the police receive news that Grey has taken a diamond necklace.

 

But not just _any_ diamond necklace.

 

“Inspector Jihoon, we’ve received news that Grey has taken the 20-carat blue diamond called the Tear of Poseidon,” Minhyun tells him. “We need you down at the site as soon as possible.”

 

At the sound of this, Jihoon sucks in a breath, and he swears to himself that this time, he is going to catch Grey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS GOING TO BE A SHORT FIC I PROMISE (short in my book is, like, 15K words so) SKDSKD I actually have like 90% of part 2 done its just, Im too lazy to work on it right now so rip aND I WAS SUPPOSED TO POST THIS ON THE 1ST BUT IM A WHOLE IDIOT WHO LOVES TO PROCRASTINATE  
> BUT I REALLY WANTED TO GET THIS OUT so  
> yea  
> also SAILOR MOON LAWS APPLY TO THIS UNIVERSE SO IF U WEAR A MASK THAT BASICALLY MEANS UR INCOGNITO SHUT UP
> 
> The title of the manga this fic is based off of is “Ibitsu na Koi no Seesaw Game” aND IT’S A WHOLEASS SMUT (INSTEAD OF KISSES, THE THIEF REQUESTS FOR SEX LOL) SO DON’T READ IT IF UR LIKE 12 YEARS OLD OML (and don’t ask me why I’ve read all the most obscure ass manga on the internet. it’s a weird hobby of mine where I go on these massive manga-reading-sprees) AND IF UR ABOUT TO GO READ THIS MANGA TO FIND OUT HOW THIS FIC ENDS, UR NOT GOING TO BE VERY SUCCESSFUL like, the only things I’ve taken from the manga are maybe 3 scenes, the concept of the officer and a thief who wants his attention, and the name Grey.  
> SO YEAH! I HOPE U ENJOYED THAT FIRST PART! TELL ME WHAT U THINK!!! AND I’LL SEE U ALL VERY SOON uwu
> 
> (twt @pocar1sweet / cc @coppercoin) <\- I accept kisses in exchange for pt 2 uwu


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PARK JIHOON IS A WHOLE DUMBASS AND HES GONNA GET FIRED LMAOO  
> also only five people gave me kisses in exchange for this chapter so :’((( u all are riding on the coattails of their hard work >:( kiss me u cowards my mouth is OPEN  
> (jk uwu) DSkSKDk anyway ENJOY, LUVS!!! uwu <3

**[PART II]**

 

By the time Jihoon makes it to the uppermost floor of the building, he’s out of breath and heaving.

 

“Oh my _GOD.”_ Jihoon screams after a very large intake of much needed oxygen.

 

In a mix of frustration and anger, he practically punches down the door leading into the eighteenth floor—the eighteenth floor that he had to run up _EIGHTEEN_ flights of stairs to reach.

 

He gasps for air and looks down the hallway both ways, catching a figure disappear around the left corner. Then he starts running.

 

“COULDN’T WE HAVE TAKEN THIS CHASE INTO AN ELEVATOR??” Jihoon cries and stumbles over his own feet. He turns the corner and sees Grey run into a room, but before the thief fully makes his way inside, he pops his head back out and replies.

 

“And let you cuff me, Inspector?” He calls with a cheeky smile. “I don’t think so.”

 

Jihoon groans. “I WOULD HAVE CALLED A TIME OUT,” He barks back.

 

Laughing, Grey slips behind the door and closes it behind him. “I’m sure you would have!”

 

Jihoon lets out an infuriated grumble as he jogs up to the room Grey slipped into. But it’s then that he finally notices that he lost the rest of his squad on the way up here—which isn’t really a surprise considering how suddenly Grey had shown up.

 

The second Jihoon caught a mere sliver of black making his way down the hall, he immediately turned tail and ran after the other, charging recklessly after him and through mazes upon mazes of rooms before following him up those god forsaken stairs.

 

If he were a less capable officer, he’d be worried about the situation he was in right now. But Jihoon knows what he’s doing, and he _knows_ that Grey won’t stop running until he’s gotten Jihoon alone, so the inspector buzzes into his walkie-talkie, stating, “Grey’s on the eighteenth floor, I’ve followed him into the west room. Standby at the door.”

 

_“Roger, we’re making our way up.”_

 

And with that affirmation, he enters alone.

 

The door closes quietly behind him and Jihoon finds himself in a deafeningly silent, pitch-black room; the only sources of light coming from the various display cases holding either gemstones or jewels, all ranging in prices starting from expensive to peaking somewhere near invaluable.

 

Jihoon takes careful steps, as if not to disturb the peace, as he makes his way deeper into the display room. But he freezes when he sees something move out of the corner of his eye, breaking into a defensive stance.

 

“Grey?” He whispers—or more like snarls. He steps uneasily to his left, narrowing his eyes and looking into the shadows. But when he’s met with nothing but more silence, he relaxes.

 

A bit too soon.

 

Suddenly, he feels a weight being lifted from his back pocket and in a flash, Jihoon whips around and aims his fist at Grey’s jaw, only to miss him by a sliver of space. He ends up knocking the other square on the shoulder instead.

 

 _“Ow,”_ He hears the thief hiss. “I’ve forgotten how hard you punch.”

 

Jihoon ignores the other’s comment and launches at him again, but this time, his fist only meets air.

 

“SHOW YOURSELF, GREY,” the inspector commands. “GIVE ME BACK THE DIAMOND.”

 

“I will,” A voice responds. Jihoon turns around and finds Grey leaning against a dimly lit display case a few meters away from him. “But, of course, not without my usual payment.”

 

It’s then that Jihoon notices in Grey’s hands are the pair of handcuffs he’s brought with him. But just to make sure, the inspector reaches into his back pocket to find nothing there.

 

He glowers at the other and Grey returns the expression with a grin, tossing the cuffs into a dark corner where Jihoon can’t immediately get to them. And the thief begins to walk his way towards the other.

 

“Last time I checked, both my hands are free,” Jihoon reminds him with a challenging smirk. “I can still fight you for the diamond, and I’m pretty sure we both know I can kick your ass.”

 

Grey looks like he considers the notion for a second, nodding, before he replies, “ _True_. But, last time I checked, you have nothing to restrain me with and I’m sure we both know that I’m more than capable with getting away.”

 

At this, Jihoon scowls.

 

Grey finally stops right in front of the shorter but makes no sudden move to harm him, so Jihoon stands his ground as firmly as he can and meets his steady gaze with an angry glare of his own. The thief gives the other a friendly smile before adding, “Besides, Inspector, there are easier ways to get what you want, so why not just save each other the hassle?”

 

Jihoon makes a scene let his expression falter before gnawing at his bottom lip unsurely. He takes a few moments to seem as though he’s deliberating what the other is suggesting, before relaxing his stance and releasing a soft sigh. “Fine,” he gives in, but not without shooting the other an irritated look.

 

If Grey was startled that Jihoon gave in so easily, he doesn’t show it. Rather, he just grins before stepping closer to receive his part of the exchange.

 

Jihoon tentatively rests his hand on the other’s shoulder and angles him down, pressing forward to place his lips onto Grey’s. He keeps it short and sweet, but still long enough for him to carry out his plan when he suddenly reaches behind himself and grips at Grey’s arms.

 

_“Wha—”_

 

Jihoon quickly stretches around the other’s waist and maneuvers Grey’s hands to his back, snapping a pair of cuffs around his wrists and giving the chain a yank to ensure they were secure.

 

The taller blinks down at him in shock and in their close proximity, he can feel him tense slightly. “You’re right, Grey, there are easier ways to get what I want,” Jihoon grins.

 

Grey stands frozen in place and stares at the other, still very much bewildered. Jihoon can see his eyes widen from underneath his mask and it does _wonders_ to the inspector’s ego, but that feeling falters when he watches an amused smile stretch across the other’s face. “Interesting. I certainly didn’t see that coming,” He mutters, wiggling his wrists in his constraints. “Where were you keeping these?”

 

“In my pants.”

 

Grey startles at the response, but breaks out into a snicker and says, “That’s gross.”

 

“But it _worked,_ didn’t it? _”_ Jihoon challenges with a smirk.

 

“I suppose so,” He hums. But it’s then that Grey unexpectedly presses a quick peck to Jihoon’s lips and adds, “Oh well.”

 

_“What?”_

 

Suddenly, Grey begins to pepper kisses on the corners of Jihoon’s mouth and against his cheek, trailing down to press his lips against every inch of the inspector’s face.

 

“W-What are you doing?” Jihoon stutters, absolutely flustered. He shrinks away slightly and grabs at the other’s shoulder, but doesn’t add any force to stop him.

 

“I’ve been caught, haven’t I?” The thief states before pressing his lips to rise of the shorter’s cheekbone. Jihoon feels his skin break into goosebumps and listens to the other continue, “I want to make the most of our last time together, before I’m arrested.”

 

Jihoon sputters at his explanation. But even though he has every power to stop the other, he finds himself hesitating.

 

And with that, the other continues.

 

Something flutters in the shorter’s chest and his breath hitches in his throat, especially so when Grey noses his way to the angle of Jihoon’s jaw and hovers there for a comfortable amount of time, inhaling gently and making Jihoon shudder. He’s overwhelmed by a pleasant feeling that flutters in his chest and hesitantly allows himself melts under the other’s soft lips when Grey finally presses a kiss to the junction between his earlobe and jaw. 

 

His breath unevens and his cheeks tint red.

 

When his mind clears for a split second, Jihoon thinks that he’s really stupid for letting the other do this, and he doesn’t know why he just lets the other kiss him like this, only deciding that he doesn’t really mind for the time being. It’s naïve of him, he knows, and Jihoon is only proven right when he suddenly feels something cool clink around his wrists and all the pleasant tingles he was feeling dies in a snap.

 

The inspector’s eyes widen and he feels the other smile against his skin. He gives his hands an experimental tug to find that his wrists have been bound together.

 

 _“You’re kidding me,”_ Jihoon breathes in disbelief.

 

Grey snickers into his ear and whispers, “Better luck next time, officer.”

 

Before Jihoon can knee the other in the crotch, Grey takes a step away and unfolds his hands from behind his back to reveal the absence of handcuffs which Jihoon secured to him only moments ago.

 

“G-GET BACK HERE, YOU— _YOU—”_ Jihoon lets out a frustrated scream as he lunges towards the other, stopping short from where he’s been linked to one of the display cases behind him. His face boils, and he bares his teeth in anger.

 

Grey chuckles at his struggling before procuring the Tear of Poseidon from underneath his shirt, sliding the necklace into the breast pocket of Jihoon’s uniform and safely moving away when the shorter tries to bite him.

 

“As always, it’s been a pleasure,” Grey declares in an infuriatingly polite tone. And before the rest of Jihoon’s police squad can make it into the room, Grey pulls Jihoon’s stolen walkie-talkie from his back pocket and mutters into the receiver, “He’s escaped to the third floor.”

 

_“Roger, inspector. We’re heading down.”_

 

“NO—WAIT!!” Jihoon cries.

 

But by the time he speaks up, Grey has already discarded the device on the floor. “I’ll see you soon,” He promises the other.

 

And with that, the thief is gone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jihoon screams at the top of his lungs for three minutes straight, pulling at his hair in frustration and punching at the wall in front of him.

 

He only stops screaming once Jinyoung places a cup of his favorite coffee in front of him, and the younger takes a seat on his desk, snatching up the newspaper that’s been crumpled up into a ball.

 

Jinyoung unfolds it.

 

_Inspector Park Jihoon Retrieves the Tear of Poseidon_

_Grey Still Missing?_

 

Angrily, Jihoon grabs the newspaper from Jinyoung’s hands and shoves it deep into the trashcan underneath his desk before collapsing back into his chair. He holds his face in his hands and sobs, heating up with embarrassment at the reminder of exactly _how_ and _why_ Grey was able to get away last time. _He didn’t even try to take off the thief’s mask._

 

Jihoon considers that he’s really an idiot and that he needs to retire immediately.

 

He tells Jinyoung exactly that.

 

“You’re too young to quit now, especially if you’re planning on living off retirement money,” Jinyoung replies, taking a bite from his muffin. “And everyone already knows that you’re an idiot.”

 

The younger begins to chortle at his own joke, spilling crumbs everywhere, at which Jihoon shoots him a tired glare. “ _Hey._ Show me some respect, you brat.”

 

“I got you coffee,” He offers. “That counts for something, right?”

 

Grumbling, Jihoon grabs for the vanilla latte Jinyoung had placed in front of him. And even though it’s his favorite drink and— _bless Jinyoung’s heart sometimes_ —also from his favorite café, he finds that he isn’t in the mood. So he opts on just staring at the brown liquid, growling in distaste.

 

There’s a few moments of silence before Jinyoung points out, “You’re taking this a lot worse than the last time Grey got away.”

 

 _Well, the last time Grey got away, it wasn’t entirely Jihoon’s stupid fault,_ He wants reply. But then he’d have to explain to the other how he’d gotten distracted with Grey wanting to kiss him and, ultimately, letting him slip away in the process.

 

At that reminder, Jihoon balls his hands into fists and grinds his teeth together. What has gotten into him? _Is he DUMB??_ Jihoon shouldn’t be letting himself go _soft_ for the other, let alone talk to him or, above all, _sympathize_. He was a criminal— _a thief_ —who needed to be apprehended and prosecuted. But… Jihoon feels like there’s something more to his feelings, something that he consciously isn’t understanding.

 

He sighs and gnaws on his bottom lip in anxious thought.

 

Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Grey went to such high-risk lengths just to get a kiss out of Jihoon. But Jihoon knows that he definitely isn’t shallow enough to fall for the other over something as simple as a kiss, _despite the fact that they’re actually quite pleasant_ (At this, Jihoon punches himself for real and the action startles Jinyoung). Yet something inside of him stops him from fully hating the other and he can’t quite put his finger on it.

 

“I can see you’re already giving yourself a hard time,” Jihoon suddenly hears the chief say, effectively snapping him out of his inner monologue. “I’ll save you the lecture for now.”

 

Jihoon huffs and grumbles under his breath, “Thanks, I guess.”

 

“No problem,” Minhyun responds. But before he can leave, Jinyoung pipes up as chipper as ever.

 

“Hey chief!”

 

Minhyun gives him a pleasant smile. “Hello, Jinyoung. Keep up the good work, you’re doing great,” He praises the other, but each word drips with spite directed wholly at Jihoon.

 

“Will do!”

 

Jihoon glowers at Jinyoung and the younger just shrugs.

 

The chief’s disappointment, however, is only a reminder to Jihoon that he needs to pull himself together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About a week after Grey’s last appearance, Jihoon finds himself buried under piles of documents; stressed out of his mind and drained to exhaustion.

 

His desk is a mess. He _feels_ like a mess. On top of all the other work thrown at him throughout the week, Jihoon still hasn’t managed to gain any leads on who Grey is or what his motives are, which only causes the chief to further nag at him, and ultimately, worsen Jihoon’s mood.

 

It’s his third day in a row coming into the office on only four hours of sleep since he’s been working overtime and at the same time, bringing cases home in an attempt to get stuff finished. When he checks the digital clock on his desk (which he eventually locates under a stack of papers), he finds that he’s been working for nearly six hours straight now.

 

With that, Jihoon decides that he really needs a break, so he stands from his chair and marches out of his office, throwing on his coat as he strides down the hall.

 

“You going somewhere, boss?” Jinyoung asks, poking his head out of his office when Jihoon walks by.

 

“Yeah,” He yawns. “I’m gonna get some coffee at my usual place.”

 

“You sure you don’t want me to get it for you? I’m almost done—”

 

Jihoon shakes his head tiredly, cutting him off. “No, I haven’t been there in a while. And besides, I think I need some fresh air to clear my head and all that. Thanks though.”

 

“No problem,” Jinyoung responds. But before the elder can leave, Jinyoung pipes up again, “Oh, wait! Do you think you get me a blueberry muffin, banana bread, a slice of carrot cake, and an americano?”

 

Jihoon stares at him. “You’re not going to be twenty-three forever, Jinyoung.”

 

“Says the person who lives exclusively off of coffee and take out fried chicken,” The younger retorts. He then coos, “You’re not going to have that adorable baby face forever, Jihoonie. Find yourself someone soon who’ll take care of you when you nearly die of a heart attack, yeah?”

 

Jihoon frowns when the younger starts snorting to himself.

 

“Fine, fine, whatever, I’ll get your stupid pastries,” The elder inspector sighs before walking out the door. _“Brat.”_

 

“Try smiling more too!” Jinyoung calls. “No one is shallow enough to fall for your face alone!”

 

Grumbling, Jihoon steps outside of the station opens his umbrella. It shields hims from the light rain and the gentle autumn breeze that bites at his cheeks, tinting his nose red, and even though it’s cold, the inspector finds a calmness walking in the rain like this... Probably only because he hasn’t seen anything but papers in the past week, rather than actually _enjoying_ this ambiance, he thinks.

 

Regardless, Jihoon decides that it’s a nice change of pace.

 

When he finally steps into his favorite coffee shop, Jihoon finds the place packed with not only its usual patrons, but also the masses of people trying to escape from the rain. And after he orders his drink and turns to look for somewhere to sit, he finds that every booth and chair has been filled.

 

But that doesn’t stop the inspector from wandering around the café in hopes that someone will stand up to leave.

 

He walks for a few moments and makes it all the way to the back of the shop when he finally spots a booth where only one boy is seated. And Jihoon almost feels bad for disturbing him since the other seems to be furiously tapping away at his laptop, but the inspector is determined to sit down and enjoy his coffee (and break), so he walks up to the booth and clears his throat, instantly gaining the other’s attention.

 

The boy looks up with a startled expression; big, brown eyes peeled wide open and hidden behind a pair of thick-framed glasses. His hair is dark and messy with his bangs falling barely above his eyes, but still just enough so that Jihoon has to resist the urge to run his hand through them and push it out of his face.

 

And at that thought, the hairs on the back of Jihoon’s neck prickle in embarrassment, so he clears his throat again. “Is it okay if I sit here?” He asks.

 

“Oh, uh,” It takes a few seconds, but the boy finally flinches out of his stupor before rapidly scooping all his papers off the table, making room for the inspector. He pulls his messenger bag off the chair that Jihoon was trying to sit on and places it next to himself. “Yes—I’m sorry—go ahead.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

When the other has finally collected all his belongings, Jihoon takes a seat across from him and gestures to all the papers in his hands, asking, “Are you a college student?”

 

“Yeah,” The other replies in a breath, glancing timidly between Jihoon and his work.

 

Jihoon nods and gets comfortable in his seat. “I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you then, I just really wanted to sit—”

 

“No!” The other exclaims a bit too loudly. When a few people turn to look, he reddens at the cheeks and shrinks in on himself, “Y-You’re not disturbing me at all,” he continues in a small voice.

 

At that, Jihoon gives him an endeared smile. “Thank you very much.”

 

“Y-Yeah,” He mumbles, gnawing at his upper lip.

 

Jihoon figures that he should probably let the other get back to his work, so he sits back and closes his eyes, relishing in the warm atmosphere of the coffee shop. He listens to the soft chatter of people around him and the pitter-patter of the rain outside, stirring the drink in his hands with a small spoon. It’s been a while since he’s been to this particular coffee shop, he’s missed it. Even though it’s a bit more crowded than what he’s comfortable with, Jihoon still feels warm and cozy, already feeling far from his troubles at the station.

 

With a small smile, he takes a sip from his vanilla latte and smiles. But it’s then that he feels a warm gaze on him, so he turns and looks up at the student sitting across from him who flinches and immediately turns red upon noticing he’s been caught.

 

Jihoon thinks that it’s kind of cute.

 

“Is there something wrong?” He asks.

 

“I—I,” The boy stammers, turning redder by the second. “Uh, n-no… sorry if I was staring.”

 

Jihoon laughs, “It’s fine,” situating himself closer to the table.

 

At this, the other breathes a small sigh of relief and gives him a wobbly smile of his own. It’s a few moments before he asks, “Um, y-you’re Inspector Park Jihoon, right?

 

“I am. You know me?”

 

“Y-Yeah. I see you on the news a lot…” He replies bashfully, pulling a newspaper from his messenger bag. He slides it towards Jihoon and the inspector reads that it’s last week’s issue—the issue where he stupidly let Grey slip away after retrieving the Tear of Poseidon.

 

At the sight of the newspaper, Jihoon’s mood sours. He is instantly reminded about that night and how Grey had kissed him—escaping yet again when he was _this close_ to apprehending him. But instead of being mad this time, Jihoon just feels… conflicted. _Frustratingly conflicted_.

 

“Is something bothering you?” He hears the boy across from him question.

 

His voice is soft and concerned, but Jihoon turns to look at him with a sharp gaze he didn’t mean to direct at the other, so the boy shrinks defensively.

 

“I-I’m sorry. I don’t want to intrude or poke around where I shouldn’t be,” He explains, “You just looked upset, is all.”

 

“Ah, no, you’re not,” Jihoon softens. He gives the other a gentle smile. “It’s nothing,” He assures him.

 

“You sure? I’m told I’m a pretty good listener.”

 

Jihoon snorts at this. “I’m sure you don’t want to listen to an inspector complain about his work.”

 

“I don’t mind,” He replies.

 

Jihoon gives him a questioning smirk that makes the other heat up in embarrassment. “I—I just—Is it… about Grey?”

 

The inspector startles slightly. “How did you know?”

 

“Well, everyone _‘knows,’”_ He responds, “It’s not really a secret. You’re the only one who ever comes in contact with Grey and you _always_ end up retrieving what he’s stolen.”

 

Jihoon blinks at him for a moment.

 

“Plus, you were glaring daggers at the newspaper, so I just assumed,” He adds quickly.

 

The inspector snorts at his confession. “Well, you’re not wrong.”

 

Pursing his lips, Jihoon stares into the coffee mug in his hands, watching the white froth swirl around with the creamy liquid of his vanilla latte. He knows that there’s something he’s missing—something more to Grey. Why doesn’t he just steal what he takes? Why Jihoon? Did Grey ever intend on stealing anything in the first place?

 

Jihoon is torn because he knows that he needs to apprehend Grey, but something inside of him wants to figure him out instead. And he’s curious. But his job isn’t to be curious, his job is to apprehend Grey and prosecute him for his crimes.

 

But the thought of that makes something twist uncomfortably in his stomach. He has a gut feeling that there’s something there for him to figure out, yet he doesn’t know how to approach the thief about it—and he hopes that this intuition isn’t just his messed-up, confused feelings.

 

At the idea of him falling for the thief over a stupid kiss, Jihoon crumples the newspaper in his hands.

 

“Ah, my crossword puzzles,” He hears the student across from him whimper.

 

“Oh! I’m so sorry,” Jihoon sputters. He flattens out the paper on the table and smooths over its edges. “I was lost in thought and didn’t realize—”

 

But it’s then that the boy laughs causing Jihoon to freeze and look up, only for him to find the other’s smile to be quite charming. “It’s okay, I figured. You seem like you have a lot on your mind and I’m sorry for bringing it up—looks like I might have made you even more upset.”

 

“It’s fine, it’s not your fault,” Jihoon says. “It’s just…”

 

The other waits patiently, listening to Jihoon sigh and watching him gnaw on his bottom lip as he considers whether or not he should just lay out his problems to this complete stranger.

 

But he seems nice enough, so Jihoon keeps his words vague. “I’ve made some mistakes that I probably shouldn’t have, but as of right now, I just can’t bring myself to fully regret any of them.” _At least, not until I’ve figure out more about Grey_.

 

With that, he looks up only to find the student blinking at him.

 

“I-I’m sorry,” Jihoon laughs, “That probably doesn’t make any sense at all—”

 

But instead of dismissing him, the other gives him a gentle smile, stating, “Don’t beat yourself up over it. You’re an inspector, right? Carry out the law as you believe it’ll bring justice to everyone.”

 

Jihoon startles, but then softens and returns the other’s smile with a sincere one of his own. “Thanks, I suppose you’re right. I seemed to have forgotten that.”

 

Nodding, the other replies, “No problem.”

 

After a few moments, Jihoon finally flags down a waitress and orders whatever pastries Jinyoung requested, which leaves him with some time to chat with the other. They talk about various things, from the weather to recent political events, but as Jihoon grows comfortable with the boy, he feels like he knows him from somewhere.

 

Laughing at something the other had said, Jihoon suddenly asks, “I know this is random, but have we met before?”

 

“Ah,” The boy nods in affirmation, taking a sip from his own drink. “I usually come here to work on school stuff and I always sit right here.”

 

“Oh, I see,” Jihoon nods as well.

 

It’s then that the other’s phone goes off and he jolts, picking up the item from his back pocket and looking at the screen. “It looks like my next class is starting soon, I have to go. I’m sorry.”

 

“Don’t worry about it.”

 

Jihoon watches as the student packs away his stuff, sliding on a trench coat and slipping his laptop back into his messenger bag. But before he can leave, Jihoon realizes that he doesn’t even know the other’s name.

 

“Wait, you know my name,” Jihoon says, “But I never caught yours.”

 

“It’s… Guanlin,” The other responds softly. And if Jihoon were a less observant person, he wouldn’t have caught that there was something that changed slightly in the air around them.

 

“It was really nice talking to you, Guanlin,” the inspector tells him. “Will I get to see you again?”

 

At this, Guanlin freezes and his face turns a dark shade of red, “Uh, y-yeah—that is, if you want to. I’m always here.”

 

“Okay,” Jihoon smiles, taking a sip from his drink.

 

He watches in amusement as the other awkwardly nods at him before shuffling out of sight.

 

And when his pastries come, he notices that there’s something extra that he didn’t order.

 

“I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t order this cup of tea,” Jihoon states with a confused frown.

 

The waiter turns to him and says, “Are you Park Jihoon?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Then it’s for you.”

 

With that, the waiter smiles and turns away, and it’s then that Jihoon finds that there’s something written on the napkin under his cup which reads,

 

_Drink tea, it’ll help you destress better than coffee._

_Good luck! :)_

_-Guanlin_

 

Jihoon grins to himself and thinks that he needs to start taking more breaks outside of the station again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s not even surprising that Jihoon finds himself with his hands cuffed behind his back, the chain securely fastened around a metal railing barring off some priceless painting.

 

He watches with a tired scowl on his face as Grey tosses a small golden statue between his hands—a small, _invaluable_ golden statue that belongs to a 20-piece set dating back to the 1700’s.

 

“As much as I like spending time with you, you do know that the sooner I get my payment, inspector, the sooner you can have your statue back,” Grey tells him, setting the item down on the table behind him. He leans back on the table as well and patiently waits for the other’s reply.

 

Jihoon gnaws at his bottom lip, not even sure why he still considers the pros and the cons of this situation. But he still does anyway, taking his sweet time stalling.

 

However, in the end, he still agrees.

 

Grey smiles to himself and rises from the table, taking the item with him. “Good choice,” He tells the inspector.

 

But it’s then that Jihoon grinds his teeth together and suddenly questions him with a sharp frustration in his voice, “Why do you keep doing this? Why don’t you just take what you come to steal in the first place? Aren’t you tired of this??”

 

Grey flinches for a split second but regains his composure easily, walking towards the other until they’re standing face to face. “Because some things—” He punctuates his pause with a kiss to the shorter’s lips, “—are worth more than what I steal.” He whispers.

 

Jihoon’s resolve falters and heart skips a beat, but he tries to keep a glare on his face when Grey grins at him, his eyes falling into crescent moons from behind his mask.

 

And then Jihoon feels the small statue being slid into his bound hands; Grey guiding Jihoon’s fingers gently over the item and securing it in the shorter’s grasp, safely returning it.

 

_Like he always does._

 

"I'll see you soon, inspector," Grey promises with a smirk.

 

“IS THAT IT?” Jihoon yells when the thief begins to walk away. He struggles in his restraints and tries to lunge at the other in frustrated anger. “WHY DON’T YOU JUST ASK ME OUT ON A DATE LIKE A NORMAL PERSON??”

 

“At this point, how do I know you won’t rat me out?” Grey cheekily responds.

 

Jihoon sputters and frowns. But before he can retort with something else, the thief continues.

 

“And besides,” Grey says almost inaudibly. “I already have.”

 

The inspector is positive he wasn’t supposed to hear that, but his eyes widen and countless of questions begin to flood his mind.

 

Jihoon knows that he has never been confessed to by anyone like Grey—or anyone who looks remotely like Grey. And now that he thinks about it, he is absolutely _sure_ he can remember every single person who has ever confessed to him in his life.

 

Jihoon’s heart begins to race and he yanks at the chain bounding him to the railing. He watches Grey’s retreating form and begins to panic, desperate to get more answers out of the other.

 

“W-WAIT!” Jihoon cries and Grey freezes where he’s standing. “WHEN? _WHAT?_ I-I DON’T REMEMBER—”

 

At this response, Grey flinches. He then turns to Jihoon, and with a sad smile on his face, he replies, “Of course you don’t.”

 

Jihoon’s heart inexplicably drops into his stomach, his mouth opening in closing in shock. “W-What?”

 

But before he can get any more answers from the other, Grey is gone.

 

And even though he’s left confused, with his chest squeezing in guilt, Jihoon realizes that this is the first solid piece of information Grey has ever given him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO EMBARRASSINGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!! lol im so tired oml i should have probably proofread this before posting but i was too excited to get this out ksJSkdfSDKJfkSfj RIP  
> HOPEFULLY THIS PART MAKES SENSE LOLOLLLOLOLOLOL  
> Also I just realized how weird my writing style is for this particular fic rip Im not a consistent person when it comes to anything o<-<  
> ANYWAY TELL ME WHAT U THINK!!!!! >:))))) 
> 
> (twt @pocar1sweet / cc @coppercoin) <\-- SEND ME KISSES IN EXCHANGE FOR PART 3 >:(


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELP,,, SOMEONE UNDERESTIMATED HOW LONG THE LAST PART WAS GOING TO BE LMAOOO so we’re amping up this bad boy up to 4 parts rather than 3 uwu  
> THANK U FOR ALL THE KISSES THO AAAAA I GOT SO MANY IM SO EXCITED <33 I HOPE THAT THIS IS WORTHY OF UR LOVE
> 
> (also just a warning, this isn’t proofread yet,,, but I was rlly excited to get this out so fjdsjfg HERE WE ARE!!!! BESIDES, it shouldn’t be that bad cuz like 90% of the shit I post isn’t proofread anywAY LMAOOOO <333) ENJOY!!! <3

**[PART III]**

 

Jihoon kicks down the door into the station and marches straight towards his office.

 

On his way, he passes by the chief who looks up from his morning coffee to talk to the shorter inspector.

 

“Jihoon, I wanted to comment about the last Gre—” Minhyun pauses abruptly and his voice trails off once he fully drinks in the image of Jihoon holding what looks to be more than a dozen yearbooks, towering over his small figure.

 

 _“Later,”_ Jihoon grunts out, barely managing to get the handle to the door of his office. After a bit of wrestling and weird twists, he’s finally able to pop the door open with his butt and steps inside, setting all the yearbooks on the floor.

 

Wasting absolutely no time, the inspector finds a notepad and pen and grabs for his 1st grade yearbook, rapidly flipping through it and scribbling down names as he goes.

 

 _“Um…”_ A voice suddenly sounds, snapping the inspector from his train of thought.

 

When Jihoon whips around, he finds Jinyoung poking his head through the door.

 

“What are you doing?” The younger asks.

 

Jihoon blinks wide-eyed at him and opens his mouth to reply; only to snap it back shut when he realizes what he was about to say.

 

He couldn’t tell the younger inspector that in truth, he was searching through all his previous yearbooks to pinpoint or _at least_ narrow down who Grey was now that he managed to snag his first clue…

 

With a sinking feeling in his chest, Jihoon still recalls Grey’s small, sad voice; telling him that he’d confessed to the inspector in his past and had gotten rejected. It left Jihoon feeling guilty for a while, but as he thought more on the thief, his guilt turned into anger. Anger, because _why on earth would Grey go to such lengths over a simple rejection—_ if that even was his motive—and forcing Jihoon to solve this mess. But that soon dissipated into frustration because even though Jihoon wanted to stay angry, he couldn’t find it in himself to point fingers just yet.

 

Gulping, the elder inspector manages to regain a professional persona, but his voice is still thick when he replies, “Nothing.”

 

Jinyoung rolls his eyes with a teasing smile, “You’re so dramatic, Jihoon— _Oh cool!_ Are those yearbooks??”

 

The younger welcomes himself inside and squats down next to Jihoon. And Jihoon frowns, reluctantly making room for him. “Yeah,” He replies flatly.

 

Jinyoung snickers and grabs for the copy from his freshman year of high school. He speeds through it, laughing, “I bet you looked like a total nerd—”

 

“I promise you, I pretty much look the same— _and I’m trying to work, Jinyoung_ , go bother the chief like you always do or something,” Jihoon insists with a whine in his voice. But the younger inspector ignores him and continues to flip through the pages.

 

It takes a few minutes, but when Jinyoung finally finds Jihoon’s freshman picture, he lets out a groan and slams the book shut. “Aww, this is boring. You _do_ look exactly the same".

 

“Told you,” He deadpans.

 

“Whatever,” Jinyoung huffs. Standing up, he brushes his pants off and heads towards the door, “Before I go, do you want any coffee?”

 

Jihoon frowns. _He does_.

 

But rather than the younger getting coffee for him, Jihoon thinks about how he wants to go to the café himself. However, the sheer amount of work that’s scattered in front of him— _literally_ scattered in front of him in the form of yearbooks and countless memories he has to begrudgingly recollect—he knows that he isn’t going to have time to do so.

 

Heaving a sigh, Jihoon says, “Yes please. Get me a vanilla latte, will you?”

 

“Sure thing, boss!” Jinyoung shoots him a pair of finger guns before disappearing behind the door.

 

When Jinyoung is gone, Jihoon groans and gets back to work. He flips to the next page of his yearbook and scans through rows of his old classmates, searching for _anyone_ who could possibly be the person behind Grey’s mask.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It takes two weeks.

 

For _two weeks_ Jihoon tirelessly worked to uncover the truth behind Grey’s identity. But unfortunately, every single lead arrived at a dead end.

 

The whole process started out with Jihoon collecting names and contacting the seven people who he _knew_ had confessed to him in his past. But after sitting down with them and questioning every single person for hours on end, he came to the conclusion that none of the suspects could have been Grey and crossed them off his list.

 

When he was back at square one again, Jihoon then decided to come up with a bigger list of people; keeping things broad by including those who may have shown interest in him or were just friendly towards him. And after endless numbers of phone calls, searching through masses of databases, and setting up meetings upon meetings, he was ultimately left with nothing again. And by the end of the second week, Jihoon was tired— _beyond frustrated._

 

Angrily, the inspector pushes away from his desk and forces his coat on. He storms out of his office with his fists shoved deep into his pockets as he heads towards the station’s exit.

 

“Where are you going?” An all too chipper voice for current his mood asks him.

 

Jihoon turns around and finds Jinyoung maneuvering his wheeled chair outside his office by flailing and kicking his legs around. “To the café,” The elder sighs, running his hand down his face in exhaustion, “I need fresh air and… coffee. Lots of it.”

 

“You look like you need a bath too,” Jinyoung replies, making a face. Jihoon self-consciously takes a whiff of his uniform as the younger continues, “Hey, do you mind getting me a chocolate chip muffin?”

 

Jihoon frowns. “I… guess.”

 

“Awesome!” The younger grins before struggling with the wheels of his chair again, trying to navigate it back into his office. “Oh! And don’t pass out,” He calls, “You look like a zombie.”

 

Jihoon wants to tell him that he’s being obnoxious but considering the way the world suddenly blurs and tilts on its axis, he figures that he needs all the luck he can get.

 

When he reaches the small café, all of his problems seem to evaporate with the rich smell of coffee beans and the light sound of chatter ringing in the air. With a deep, calming breath through the nose, Jihoon gets in line to order his vanilla latte, but it’s then that he catches sight of a tall figure picking up his own drink.

 

Jihoon smiles to himself before calling out, “Guanlin!”

 

The student visibly jumps and fumbles with his coffee that almost flies out of his hand. He whips around and blinks rapidly at the short inspector, pointing to himself, mouthing the word _‘me?’_

 

Jihoon playfully rolls his eyes and snickers, “Yes you. Who else would I be talking to?”

 

Instantly, Guanlin’s entire face turns red, his lips forming a small ‘o.’ And at this, Jihoon finds himself more than endeared.

 

“Save me a spot, will you?” He asks, flashing a grin.

 

But the other just stands there in disbelief.

 

It’s an awkward few seconds before Guanlin finally manages to snap back into reality, stuttering out a horribly strung together, “S-Sure! Yes, o-of course!”

 

Jihoon laughs, “Thanks.” But before he can say anything else, the younger spins around with his shoulders stiff and quickly hurries to the back of the café to secure his favorite booth for them.

 

When Jihoon walks over with his cup of coffee, he notices that Guanlin has calmed down just a bit because his face is no longer a scorching shade of red and his hands are no longer shaking as much. He breathes a sigh of relief when he sinks back into the comfortable leather of the booth, taking a sip of his coffee before saying, “It’s good to see you again.”

 

“You too!” Guanlin replies a bit too quickly, biting back a grin. He pauses for a second, then continues, “How have you been? You haven’t come in for the past few weeks...”

 

“I’ve just been tired mostly, but I’ll manage,” Jihoon sighs into his vanilla latte. “I’ve been busy with work.”

 

“Ah,” Guanlin nods worriedly, “I’m sorry you’re having such a rough time.”

 

“It’s fine,” Jihoon brushes him off. “Even though it doesn’t seem like it right now, I enjoy it, but as of currently, let’s talk about something else please,” He finishes with a light laugh.

 

“O-Oh! Sorry! Sure, i-if that’s what you want,” Guanlin stammers, “What did you want to talk about?”

 

“I don’t know,” Jihoon hums. A smile spreads across his lips when he decides, “Tell me something about yourself.”

 

At this, the other’s eyes widen, “Me?” He whispers.

 

“Of course,” The inspector laughs. “Aside from knowing that your name is Guanlin and that you’re a college student who prefers tea over coffee—oh, and by the way, thank you for that,” Jihoon adds. He watches as the other’s cheeks tint pink, and he bashfully scratches the back of his neck, “—I don’t really know much.”

 

“Well… there’s not much to say,” Guanlin shrugs after a few moments. “Like you said, I’m a college student, I… moved here with my parents from Taipei when I was in elementary school, but as of right now, I live by myself…”

 

Jihoon nods, urging for him to continue.

 

“I like sushi?” Guanlin tries, which earns him a laugh from the other before he smiles and bows his head shyly, “And I, uh, like to solve puzzles in my free time, I guess.”

 

“Puzzles?” Jihoon asks, quirking a brow.

 

“Yeah,” the other chuckles. He pulls out a newspaper from his messenger bag and flips to the games, “I’m using the word _puzzle_ broadly; so, things like sudoku or… creating and solving computer codes, I suppose.”

 

“Ah,” Jihoon nods. Then with a grin, he adds, “I think that’s really cool, Guanlin.”

 

“R-Really?” Guanlin asks. And when Jihoon nods again, the red returns to Guanlin’s cheeks and he smiles to himself, “Th-Thanks… What about you, though? What do you like doing for fun?”

 

“Um, nothing much, really,” Jihoon replies after a few moments of thought. He swirls his latte with a small spoon before continuing, “Being an inspector is fun and it takes up most of my time, so I guess that’s my “hobby” as of now. But when I was in high school and going through college, I liked playing games—not your kind of games, though. Things like shooters and PvP’s.”

 

“That’s fun,” Guanlin perks up.

 

“You play?”

 

“Ah, no, I can’t,” the younger shakes his head, laughing bashfully. “I’m really bad.”

 

“Really?” Jihoon questions. “Then I guess I’ll have to teach you some time.”

 

At this, Guanlin flinches. He blinks owl-eyed at the other, his mouth gaping when he asks, “Y-You would?”

 

“Why not?” The inspector chuckles, “Sure I would.”

 

Guanlin nods and smiles sheepishly to himself, “O-Okay…”

 

Their conversation continues as the time goes by, and they ask each other simple questions, chatting comfortably until Jihoon has to head back to the station.

 

He takes a final sip from his vanilla latte, finishing it off, before telling Guanlin, “I should probably be getting back to work. My boss is going to be grumpy that I’ve been out for too long.”

 

“Oh! I’m sorry for holding you up,” The other is quick to apologize.

 

Jihoon shakes his head in response, “It’s my fault, and besides, I had fun,” which elicits another flushed expression from the younger.

 

Before Jihoon can leave, Guanlin speaks up again, quietly saying, “Thank you… for sitting with me.”

 

When the inspector turns to look at Guanlin, he finds the younger chewing on his bottom lip and biting back a happy smile; nervously gripping at the mug in his hands and staring at it softly since he can’t seem to look Jihoon in the eye.

 

The inspector finds himself shying up as well, and he responds, “Thanks for letting me sit with you.”

 

Guanlin nods.

 

Jihoon puts on his jacket and with that, gets ready to leave, but he stops to ask, “I’ll see you next time?”

 

“I-I’d like that,” Guanlin grins.

 

As he heads back to the station, Jihoon finds that he’s definitely in a better mood; his chest feeling light and airy with a smile pulling at the corners of his lips. But that feeling turns into half-hearted guilt when he enters through the double doors and Jinyoung shrieks, “YOU FORGOT TO GET MY MUFFIN???”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The gap between Grey’s last appearance and now is longer than it’s ever been in the past.

 

It’s about a month and a half later when the station receives a call at around 11:10 in the middle of the night, stating that the infamous thief had broken in and stolen an ancient jade artifact from a close by national museum.

 

The time gap makes the inspector suspicious while he also finds himself thankful. It gives him more than enough time to consider what his next course of action with the thief should be, and the decision he makes isn’t one that Minhyun would be happy about.

 

He arrives at the scene shortly upon receiving the news, and after a bit of debriefing, he leads a squad of officers into the museum to search for Grey.

 

After a while of leading the officers nowhere, Jihoon proposes that they should split up into two teams to cover more ground. And after aimlessly taking his new team around for another long while, they eventually come across a long hallway, and the inspector decides that this is a good place to lose them too.

 

“DID YOU SEE THAT?” Jihoon suddenly points towards the end of the hall. “He ran that way!”

 

Instantly, the officers run in the direction Jihoon points, but instead of following them, Jihoon walks the other way.

 

When he turns the corner he previously came around, he finds Grey waiting with his hands behind his back—obviously hiding the statue. And upon seeing the inspector, a cheeky smile spreads across his lips.

 

“You’re getting easy for me to read,” Jihoon states blandly, following the thief into an empty exhibit room.

 

The heavy doors close loudly behind them and Grey apologizes with an absent-minded hum, “Sorry, I’ll try to shake things up a little next time then.”

 

But instead of replying, Jihoon stands there unamused. He extends his hand to the other as a silent gesture for the artifact back.

 

Grey blinks wide-eyed and looks between the inspector’s hand and his expression. “No scuffle? No argument? Nothing? Come to think of it, you _did_ come to me first,” Grey teases. “Did you miss me that much? It’s only been a few months since we last saw each other, inspector.” He takes a step closer to the other, and Jihoon instantly snaps a cuff on his wrist, attaching the other half of to a railing.

 

“That’s not it,” Jihoon declares.

 

Grey frowns and gives his wrist a yank. “You know doing this is pointless, right?”

 

“I’m not using it to arrest you, Grey,” the inspector confesses, “It’s more to restrain you from walking away from me right now.”

 

Grey raises a brow.

 

“I want to talk.”

 

“Talk?” The thief repeats quietly. His voice echoes through the empty room when chuckles in amusement, “How do I know that you’re not stalling?”

 

“You know I’m not stalling,” He immediately responds. The seriousness in his tone causes the thief to straighten up a little, the smile falling from his face. “You heard me command my squad in a different direction. Right now, it’s just you and me with all the time in the world,” Jihoon says.

 

Grey shifts a little where he’s standing. He doesn’t come off as nervous, but only Jihoon would notice the thief’s slight change in demeanor.

 

He doesn’t say anything to stop Jihoon from talking.

 

“Before you left the other night, you told me that you confessed to me before,” Jihoon starts out. When Grey neither denies or claims it, he continues, “So does this mean I know you in real life?”

 

“ _Know_ me?” Grey tries to lighten the situation with a small grin.

 

“I mean, have I talked to you before?”

 

“We’re talking right now, aren’t we?”

 

“I mean the real you,” Jihoon says before carefully adding, “… not _Grey.”_

 

It’s quiet for a long while before Grey snickers, “Why should I answer your question? Answering it doesn’t seem like it’ll benefit me at all,” He elaborates, “Rather, won’t it be doing the exact opposite—”

 

But he’s cut off when Jihoon shouts, “BECAUSE I WANT TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS!”

 

Grey snaps his mouth shut, taken aback.

 

“I don’t think you understand how dangerous this game of yours is becoming!” the inspector fumes and jabs Grey in the chest with his finger. “Why do you do this? Is it my fault?? We’ve been at this for more than _two years_ , Grey, and even though it pains me to admit this, I know the police force is never going to catch you because you always manage to get away.”

 

The thief is silent and Jihoon sighs.

 

“At this point, the most I can do is try to understand you and somehow… stop this,” He mutters, “So help me out a little, or else… someone with more power than me is going to intervene and put an end to this in a way that only I know you don’t deserve.”

 

Grey doesn’t say anything or make a move, but Jihoon can feel the taller’s gaze on him and it makes him shift anxiously; adverting his eyes to the ground with the back of his neck heating up.

 

“We’ve talked,” Grey finally admits.

 

At the sound of his confession, Jihoon jolts.

 

It’s then that he feels the thief take his hand, placing a familiar pair of handcuffs in them before taking his other and returning the stolen jade statue. He places a gentle kiss to the inspector’s forehead, lingering there for a while, adding, “But I guess before that… you never seemed to notice me.”

 

Even long after Grey steps away, Jihoon still feels the soft sensation of the other’s lips against his forehead.

 

His heart twists when the taller offers him a sad smile; watching him nod in a farewell as he turns to make his escape.

 

Jihoon doesn’t try to stop the thief when he exits the room, simply buzzing into his walkie-talkie minutes later, stating, “He got away.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jihoon slumps back in his office chair and lets out a loud sigh.

 

He rubs his baggy eyes with the palms of his hands, remembering exactly how little sleep he got the previous night after returning home from the crime scene.

 

It was a while that Jihoon stayed awake in his apartment, thinking about what Grey had told him.

 

The thief had mentioned that Jihoon hadn’t noticed him in the past, which only led Jihoon to believe that he had been doing this to get the inspector’s attention.

 

 _“He’s so stupid_ ,” Jihoon groans to himself just thinking about it. But a part of him knows he’s still missing a large chunk of the other’s story, and after even more thought, Jihoon finds himself feeling guilty for some reason. As if he’d hurt Grey in the past without knowing it; making him feel partly responsible for the thief’s attempted robberies.

 

Jihoon is the only person in the world who knows Grey never intended to do any harm; always easily handing back every item he’s stolen, all in exchange for a simple kiss. It’s childish, yes. And even more so, foolish. But somewhere deep inside of Jihoon’s heart, he thinks that there’s a soft spot growing for the masked thief who went to such great lengths to earn one little act of affection.

 

And its then that Jihoon realizes that rather than wanting to catch Grey, he wants to help him instead. Jihoon wants to know what he did to make Grey go to these lengths, and at the same time, he wants to stop whatever this is before Grey’s stupid little game becomes something that the thief will get wrongly, yet horribly punished for.

 

Suddenly, there’s a knock on Jihoon’s office door, and the chief peeks in.

 

“Are you busy?” Minhyun asks. “I have something important that we need to discuss.”

 

It takes a bit for Jihoon to snap back away from his thoughts, but when he does, he shakes his head, saying, “No, I’m free. What’s up?”

 

The chief lets himself into Jihoon’s office and closes the door behind him. He walks up to the younger, leaning up against his desk before stating, “I just got off the phone with the sergeant again and he’s not happy.”

 

“W-What does that mean?” Jihoon questions hesitantly.

 

“It means that our time is up,” Minhyun explains with a sigh, “The sergeant doesn’t think we’re capable enough to handle this case… The next time Grey makes his appearance, the sergeant is coming onto the scene with us.”

 

The inspector feels his gut twist as he watches Minhyun in silence for a moment. The elder then continues.

 

“He told me that if you let Grey slip away one more time…” the chief purses his lips and exhales, “he’s taking you off the case.”

 

Jihoon’s heart stops and the blood drains from his face. “What? I-I don’t understand? Why me?? Y-You can’t—”

 

“The sergeant told me one of his officers reported that you disappeared after pointing the squad in the wrong direction,” Minhyun turns to look at the younger inspector, and the seriousness in his eyes causes Jihoon to flinch away in guilt. “Is that true?”

 

“It… is,” Jihoon admits softly. But before Minhyun can think wrongly of him, the inspector defends himself, “But trust me when I say that was the only way I was going to get the artifact back—Grey was never going to reveal himself in front of all those officers, and you of all people should know that. You can’t take me off the case, he won’t listen to you or anyone else.”

 

“It’s out of my hands now, Jihoon,” Minhyun sighs. “I do trust you, I really do, and I know how Grey is and I tried everything I could to get the sergeant to change his mind, but he’s drawing the line. This has to end.”

 

“Just give me a few more tries! I’ll get to the bottom of this, I-I’m just a few steps away from figuring out who Grey is, I—”

 

“It’s been too long already. This is our last shot… _Your_ last shot,” Minhyun tells him. He then takes a taser gun out of the pocket from his trench coat and slides it towards the younger. At the sight of it, Jihoon’s eyes widen, “If it comes down to it, use force if you have to.”

 

When Minhyun pushes himself away from Jihoon’s desk and heads towards the door, a weight settles heavy in Jihoon’s chest. Grey had never hurt Jihoon, it’d be wrong to hurt Grey. Minhyun doesn’t know that the thief had never done anything _wrong_ , except for maybe… trespassing, but that hardly means that he deserves what the sergeant is asking of him.

 

“We’re counting on you,” Minhyun says from the inspector’s office door. He offers the younger a sympathetic smile before leaving.

 

But his gesture doesn’t make Jihoon feel better at all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few hours later, Jihoon finds himself in the small café across the block from the station. He plops down right in front of Guanlin and chugs his entire vanilla latte in one go, not coming up for air once.

 

Guanlin startles away from his laptop and his eyes widen in horror as he watches the inspector down the entire steaming cup of coffee. When Jihoon finishes up to the very last drop, Guanlin sputters, “A-Are you okay??? Is that normal?”

 

Jihoon stares grimly at his empty mug. “I don’t know.”

 

“I-Is your mouth burnt?”

 

“Yes,” He wheezes.

 

“Oh my god, w-wait here—” Guanlin breathes before tripping over his feet and scrambling off to ask for a cup of ice.

 

When he returns, Jihoon shoves a few ice cubes into his mouth and lets them sit there until they melt. His mouth still aches but it at least evens out the uncomfortable squeezing in his chest.

 

“W-Why did you do that?” The student asks worriedly.

 

 _“I don’t know,_ I’m impulsive when I’m upset,” Jihoon sighs.

 

“You could have gotten hurt...”

 

“That’s the least of my problems right now,” The inspector laughs bitterly. He then heaves out another sigh before slumping back against the booth.

 

“Did you want to talk about it?” Guanlin offers, fiddling with his fingers and looking over the sulking inspector in concern.

 

“It’s classified, I can’t tell you,” Jihoon softly replies, which Guanlin responds to with a nod.

 

He crunches on a piece of ice in deep thought, reflecting on everything that’s been running through his mind for the past 24 hours. It doesn’t take long before Jihoon feels like he’s going to lose it again, so he continues anyway, “It’s just… I want to help someone but doing so would put _me_ in a bad position. And as much as I want to put myself before this person, for some dumb reason, I’m still torn,” He grumbles.

 

Guanlin lets that sink in for a minute before he replies, “I don’t want to come off as dismissive… but is that what’s really bothering you?”

 

“Excuse me?” Jihoon asks.

 

His tone must have been sharp because Guanlin flinches and hurriedly explains himself, adjusting his glasses out of nervous habit, “I-It’s just that… listen to yourself. You have every right to be greedy and ‘put yourself before’ this particular person, yet you still hesitate for their sake,” Guanlin sputters. His eyes then soften and he says with an upmost sincerity in his voice, “You’re really an admirable officer, Jihoon. I don’t doubt that you’ll make the right decision when the time comes.”

 

Jihoon blinks in shock for a few moments, drinking in what the other had told him before he relaxes. “That’s so sweet,” He coos, leaning over their table and smiling at Guanlin.

 

The student explodes all kinds of red, and at this, Jihoon begins to laugh.

 

“Seriously, though. Thanks,” The inspector admits, his voice still laced with stray chuckles. “I guess I’ll just have to keep trusting my gut. Besides, it’s gotten me this far, hasn’t it?”

 

Guanlin nods and smiles in agreement.

 

Suddenly a phone sounds, and the student jumps, pulling the device from his back pocket and cancelling his alarm. “Ah, I’m sorry to cut our meeting short. I need to start heading to my next class…”

 

“It’s fine, I technically didn’t clock out for my break so I should probably get going too,” Jihoon says, standing up from the booth. “We can walk out together.”

 

When Guanlin nods and rises from the booth as well, Jihoon is slightly taken aback, realizing that this is his first time standing so close to the student. He dimly observes Guanlin is quite tall—more than half a head taller than Jihoon himself—but rather than being startled by his height alone, the inspector finds himself surprised over the small feeling of Déjà vu that flares at the back his mind.

 

They walk out the door but before Guanlin can take off in the other direction, he offers the shorter a bashful smile and a small wave. “I’ll see you soon?”

 

Jihoon perks at the familiar phrase, but he quickly shakes it off, just promising the other instead, “Yeah, I’ll see you soon, Guanlin.”

 

He watches as the younger’s eyes light up in silent happiness, and he waves one last time before disappearing with the crowd.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grey makes his appearance about two weeks after his last robbery, and as promised, the sergeant comes with a handful of his own officers.

 

Jihoon has only seen the sergeant three times in his life; once at his graduation ceremony, a second time when he was being assigned to his station, and a third when he attended Minhyun’s 31st birthday party a few months back. And even though every previous encounter he’s had with the man had been fairly short, Jihoon thinks that he’s seen the elder _more than enough_ times to last him a century.

 

“Inspector Park Jihoon,” The sergeant greets him, staring at him hard in the eye—which is probably just a normal expression for the other. But that doesn’t stop Jihoon from taking in a big gulp and nodding at him.

 

“Hello Sergeant Kwon,” He says as politely as his wavering voice will let him, “It’s been a while.”

 

“So it has,” The elder agrees, dragging on each syllable with his tone low and deep.

 

The sound itself has Jihoon anxious to be working with the other already, and he hopes that either Minhyun or Jinyoung walks over soon so that he doesn’t have to be alone with the sergeant any longer.

 

He’s a tall man, probably in his early forties, with a stern looking face and dark, soulless eyes to match. Jihoon thinks that he’s never seen him smile, and now that he thinks about it, Sergeant Kwon looks practically the same every time he’s seen him; serious, quiet, his hair pushed up and gelled back with a cigarette permanently hanging between a pair of thin, chapped lips.

 

“Last time I saw you,” The sergeant idly muses, instantly snapping Jihoon away from his thoughts, “You were eating every mini corndog at Chief Minhyun’s previous birthday party.”

 

That phrase alone puts Jihoon into a world of embarrassment and he immediately shrinks in on himself, forcing out an awkward, “O-Oh yeah, ha-ha… good times.”

 

“Mmhmm,” The sergeant grumbles.

 

Luckily, both Minhyun _and_ Jinyoung approach them at the same time, and straightaway, the chief begins to speak.

 

“We’ve positioned more than enough officers from every entrance to every crevice that this museum has,” He states, “Grey is locked inside, so now is our time to move.”

 

 _“Our?”_ Jihoon repeats. The chief hadn’t directly taken part in a Grey robbery in more than a year; the man having stopped shortly after he realized Grey only ever sought out Jihoon. “You’re coming with us?”

 

“Yes,” Minhyun affirms, looking directly at the sergeant. “Both Sergeant Kwon and I will be shadowing you on this pursuit, if that is okay with him.”

 

The sergeant seems surprised about Minhyun tagging along—probably not hearing of it until now—but he doesn’t say anything against it regardless, replying with a curt nod.

 

When that is settled, Jinyoung pulls out a small notepad from his pocket and begins to give them a rundown; telling them every bit of information they were able to pick up from the nightguards stationed at the museum. Apparently, there had been activity reported below the main building, but when a few guards went down to check, nothing was found. Then about a half an hour later however, a priceless bangle belonging to a historical Princess was declared missing from its case, and that was when the police were called and notified.

 

With that information, the three men walk up to the museum’s doors, but before they can enter, the sergeant rests a firm hand on Jihoon’s shoulder, holding him back to speak privately.

 

“You know what’s at stake, right?” The elder asks.

 

“I do,” Jihoon responds.

 

“Then you know that Grey has to be caught tonight. No more of your… _mess ups_.”

 

The younger bristles over how the sergeant practically dismisses all his work over the past two years; the elder implying that he thought all Jihoon had been doing was slacking off when trying to apprehend Grey. He grinds his teeth together, but pushes his fury aside for now, grunting out an obedient _“Yes, sir”_ instead.

 

Nodding, the sergeant suddenly takes his gun from the holster on his belt and pushes open the doors to follow after Minhyun.

 

At the sight of the weapon, Jihoon’s eyes widen in horror.

 

“What are you doing? He’s not violent—” The younger immediately shouts, startling both the chief and Sergeant Kwon.

 

The sergeant blinks for a few moments, following Jihoon’s gaze to jadedly look at the gun in his hand. “It won’t be fired until he fires first,” He reasons with a bored flatness to his tone.

 

“Grey _never_ carries a gun,” Jihoon growls, glaring deeply at the sergeant.

 

“Then that’s all the better.”

 

The almost dismissive response the inspector gets causes a wave a nausea to wrack though his body. But when the sergeant isn’t paying attention, Minhyun pats Jihoon’s shoulder and whispers, “Trust him, he won’t fire it.”

 

Jihoon is still glaring daggers into the elder man’s back even as they walk through the museum’s lobby, and seeing this, the chief gives his shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

 

“I’ve worked with the sergeant for many years, and while his ‘ _intimidation tactics’_ may come off as a bit extreme, he knows what he’s doing.”

 

“With a face like his, he doesn’t need a gun to intimidate anyone,” Jihoon snarls distastefully. “He’s such a killjoy, I can’t believe you invited that guy to your birthday party.”

 

Minhyun laughs. “I promise he’s a lot nicer once you get to know him.”

 

But that claim alone doesn’t make Jihoon like the guy any better.

 

The trio continues to walk throughout the halls while keeping an eye out in every exhibit room they check. Jihoon finds that Minhyun is actually quite pleasant to work with; the elder letting Jihoon lead the way and making helpful comments whenever he apparently misses something important.

 

The sergeant however, is a whole different story. He stands back and watches with a permeant scowl on his face, making Jihoon feel as though this were a test rather than an official investigation. Yes, it keeps the inspector on his toes, but at the same time, it makes him feel highly uncomfortable; as if _any_ slip up would result in his ejection from the case.

 

They walk through each floor asking all officers who pass by if they’d heard any suspicious activity taking part in the museum, but unfortunately, nothing turns up or seems to be out of the ordinary.

 

After a long while of searching, they finally make it to the third floor of the building. All seems to be doing just as well as they were on the last floor, that is, until an officer scurries up to them, heaving and out of breath.

 

“Sergeant!” The officer pants frantically, giving him a salute, “Grey has been spotted in the statue exhibit.”

 

The three men look amongst each other before Jihoon commands, “Let’s go.”

 

They quickly sprint down the hall before coming across two large, metal doors; pushing them open into a room filled with displays of historical statues and ancient idols of worship.

 

The room is quiet. So quiet, that his voice still echoes when the inspector softly asks the officer, “Are you sure Grey is here?”

 

“We saw him go into that room,” The officer points towards another section of the exhibit, “A few officers were still chasing him when I turned back to request backup. We think he’s stolen a master key to the museum because when we tried to get into that room, the door was locked. Everyone has dispersed to cover all the exits into that room.”

 

Jihoon nods and turns to the chief and sergeant, “We should split up because Grey has probably moved locations since then. I’ll check the room and you two spread out.”

 

Nodding, the three of them go their separate ways, but before Jihoon can leave, he turns back to the officer and commands, “You, come with me.”

 

Jihoon cautiously walks up to the door, and after pressing his ear to the metal and hearing no suspicious sounds, he gives the handle a twist. To his surprise, the handle fully turns and the door opens easily.

 

“That’s odd,” The officer behind him hums.

 

At this, Jihoon rolls his eyes. He grabs the taller by the collar and hauls him into the room, slamming the door loudly behind him and pushing the other against its frame.

 

“Impersonating an officer is a crime, Grey,” Jihoon states, tightening his grip.

 

The other lets out a breathy chuckle and he holds his hands up in surrender. “But if we’re putting things into perspective,” Grey comments lowly, “I think this is hardly my worst offense.”

 

Jihoon lifts the visor from the other’s police helmet and sure enough, finds the thief smirking down at him, wearing the same grey mask he always wears.

 

Grinding his teeth in annoyance, Jihoon reaches up to snatch the article off, but its then that the lights suddenly go out and Grey uses this distraction to quickly flip their positions.

 

Jihoon loses his footing and stumbles forward, dazed and unaware that the thief manages to take his handcuffs from his back pocket and snap one onto his wrist; attaching the other half onto the handle bar of the door behind him before stepping away.

 

The lights flicker back on and when his vision comes back into focus, he finds the thief holding the keys to his cuffs in one hand and what looks to be a small remote in the other.

 

“Is that…?” Jihoon starts.

 

Grey nods with a proud smile. “When I heard the sergeant was coming, I thought I’d be safe and hack into the museum’s security systems and power units. Don’t worry though, I designed the virus to destroy itself before sunrise,” He says. “Now, onto more pressing matters.”

 

Jihoon silently watches as the other procures a small, golden bangle from his pocket, holding it between two fingers for the inspector to see.

 

“You know what my price is in exchange for this, right?” Grey asks, but of course, the question is rhetorical. They’ve done this countless of times in the past, but it’s only this time, Jihoon needs it to be their last.

 

“Why do you do this?” Jihoon asks the other quietly. “This has to stop, Grey. Your game has gone too far.”

 

Grey is silent, and he calmly meets the inspector’s searching gaze, watching as the light dims in Jihoon’s eyes; the inspector realizing that that he’s not going to get an answer from the other anytime soon.

 

With a sigh, Jihoon defeatedly gives in. _“Fine,”_ He whispers.

 

Grey walks towards the shorter and closes the distance between them until they’re standing only about an inch apart.

 

Then, the thief waits.

 

Jihoon sees dark eyes hidden behind a simple grey mask, blinking down at him and watching his every move. They’re innocent and clear, gleaming at him in muted anticipation, yet darting away ever slightly as if he were suddenly shy.

 

The inspector flutters his eyes shut and rests his hand on the taller’s chin, guiding him down to place a kiss against his soft lips.

 

Instantly, he feels the other suck in a surprised breath; shuddering when Jihoon moves his hand to rest on the crook of his neck before parting his mouth gently to kiss the inspector back.

 

Jihoon gasps and tightens his hold on the other’s shirt when he begins to move a bit more eagerly, working Jihoon’s lips apart so that he can kiss between the seams, drinking in his breath and pecking softly at the corners of his mouth. His actions remain delicate, however; sweet, as if kissing Jihoon were something to be cherished and savored.

 

He feels Grey smile into the kiss when Jihoon accidentally lets out a choked hum and shivers; his lips stuttering and gasping again as he pulls gently at the taller’s collar, twisting the fabric between his fingers.

 

When they part, the grin on Grey’s face is innocent and full of delight. His eyes twinkle from behind his mask, whispering a soft, “thank you” before slipping the stolen bangle into Jihoon’s cuffed hand.

 

It feels wrong when the inspector takes the taser gun from his pocket and presses it to Grey’s abdomen.

 

His stomach twists when he watches the light fade from the thief’s eyes when he quickly turns down to look at the weapon pointed at him.

 

“The sergeant wants you arrested today, Grey,” Jihoon states, his tone void of emotion. “I can’t let you run away this time.”

 

Grey is quiet for a few moments. He opens his mouth to say something, but he’s suddenly cut off when a loud _BANG!_ explodes from the other side of the door, causing the pair to jolt in horror.

 

Frantically, Jihoon twists around to find a bullet dent protruding from the metal door, close to the handle. His eyes widen when he realizes that the others were trying to force the lock open, but doesn’t get a chance to think on it any further when another gunshot sounds.

 

This time, the bullet breaks through the metal and it narrowly misses Jihoon.

 

“HOLD YOUR FIRE,” Jihoon practically shrieks, yanking on the chain to his cuffed wrist.

 

“OPEN THIS DOOR, GREY, WE KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE,” The sergeant yells over his voice. “THIS IS THE POLICE, STAND DOWN AND HAND YOURSELF OVER QUIETLY.”

 

Before another shot can be fired, Grey scrambles over and unlocks Jihoon’s cuff from the handle bar; taking the inspector’s hand before pulling him away from the door into safety.

 

 _“Are you okay??”_ Grey asks, his eyes wide and panicked from underneath his mask. He turns Jihoon around and breathes a sigh of relief when he finds no bullet wounds.

 

Jihoon points his weapon at the thief again, and at this, Grey cautiously takes a step back.

 

“Can’t you see how dangerous this is becoming? Don’t you know what’s at stake??” Jihoon asks, his volume rising with every word. “You’re a good person, Grey. You never intended to steal anything, yet the price you’re going to pay for it is far greater than what I know you deserve. _Did you ever stop to think about the consequences behind your little game if you'd gotten caught?”_

 

Another loud bang echoes through the exhibit room, and at the sound, the two of them flinch.

 

It’s quiet for the few seconds that follow before the thief speaks up again.

 

“I have,” Grey admits softly. He sucks in a breath, and confesses in a voice even softer, “But every time I told myself I was going to stop, I figured that… one more kiss would be worth the risk.”

 

Jihoon feels his heart stutter in his chest.

 

It’s then that there’s a powerful slam at the door, and a few of the screws fall from its hinges, the metal almost giving way.

 

After a moment of internal debate, Jihoon locks his jaw and grounds his teeth together; lowering his taser and murmuring, “Get out of here, Grey. You don’t deserve this.”

 

Grey’s eyes widen in confusion. “Wh-What? Why? What's going to happen to you?”

 

“Nothing,” Jihoon replies hurriedly. _“Just—_ I know I’ll get removed from the case, but other than that I don’t know.”

 

Shouting from behind the door signifies to the inspector that the officers are getting ready to bust in. And at this, Jihoon yells _“Hurry up!”_

 

Grey looks like he doesn’t want to go. As if for a second, he considers letting himself get arrested. But something changes his mind and the thief gives Jihoon a nod; his eyes softening before he says with an upmost sincerity in his voice, “You’re really an admirable officer, Jihoon.”

 

Hearing the phrase, Jihoon startles and gazes at the thief, realizing that he’s heard it somewhere before. “I’m… what?” He asks cautiously.

 

A look of shock crosses Grey’s features, but it’s quickly masked by his police helmet when he pulls the visor down to hide his face. Rapidly, the thief moves to position himself behind one of the many statues throughout the area, leaving Jihoon to stand alone in the middle of the room to wait.

 

Moments later, the door finally comes down, and with it, masses of police officers file into the room, shouting different commands.

 

The sergeant strides in with a serious expression, his gun smoking from having just used it. Minhyun rushes up to Jihoon and checks to see if he’s okay, asking questions revolving around where Grey was and if he’d gotten away.

 

But before he responds, Jihoon catches sight of a tall, uniformed figure out of the corner of his eye, making his way through the mess of officers and towards the exit.

 

He disappears with the crowd, and it’s only then that Jihoon finally lets out a sigh of relief.

 

That relief is short lived, however, when he turns back to Minhyun. And the gaze he is greeted with tells him that he’s about to be in a world of trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS SO DRAMATIC IM ZKDJFBJSSNNDNDKSKSNDNDNDJDJSJSJDJDJDJFJJDJDJDJDJDJJFJF and omg not only is JIHOON dumb, BUT GUANLIN IS TOO?????? LMAOOO anyway imagine inspector!jihoon in uniform with uniform&trench coat Minhyun and sergeant OC standing behind him o<-<
> 
> Also before u flame me, greylin was wearing one of those police riot helmets, the one with the visors sdjfsdfj except in this universe, the visor is VERy tinted kSKDKSFK LMAOOOO <3333 WEDONTTALKABOUTTHEPLOTHOLESINTHISFIC!!!! Wow I wish I had a larger iq
> 
> Sorry about increasing the chapters o<-< each part has been about 5K words and I wanted to keep that consistent cuz im a weirdo,,,,  
> So I guess this is gonna be 20K words WOW idk how ppl write solid stories that r like,,, under 10K LIKE THAT JUST BLOWS MY MIND I wish I was that powerful  
> Anyway SEND ME KISSES IN EXCHANGE FOR PART 4 >:) AND I’ll see u guys next time AAAA <33
> 
> (twt @pocar1sweet / cc @coppercoin)
> 
>  **P.S.** CHECK OUT @Panwink_Week on twitter!! :D im going to be participating and I hope u guys do too!!! UWU  
>  READ MORE ABOUT IT --> https://twitter.com/panwink_week/status/1005252797925736448 <\-- and drop them a follow for more updates >:)  
> And if u don’t plan on participating, please at least help spread the word!! :D


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELP!! HERE IT IS! THE FINAL CHAPTER! *u* sorry for the wait, life has been hitting hard these days :0 but I hope u guys enjoy! ;u;  
>  **warning:** bullshit logic LMAOOO BUT YALL SHOULD ALREADY BE EXPECTING THAT SINCE I HAVE THE IQ OF AN INFANT  
>  I also added an epilogue due to Popular Request uwu which is why this chapter is so FAT… but I also had so much fuckign backstory to write which is where like,,, 90% of the beef came from so
> 
> AND if you don’t remember, I’ll restate this now since their age differences are kind of important:  
> Jihoon is 25, Guanlin is 22, Jinyoung is 23, and Minhyun 31. /coughs/alsohwangdeepisverymuchimplied/coughs/
> 
> ANYWAY ENNNJJOOOYYYYY!!!!! <3 <3 <3

**[PART IV]**

 

Jihoon gets a two-month suspension from field work and is taken off the case.

 

That is his penalty for failing to capture Grey as well as allegedly helping him escape that night.

 

Things probably would have been more severe if Jihoon didn’t retrieve the missing artifact, or if Grey didn’t cut all the cameras, leaving no solid evidence that their time together ever happened. But Jihoon lucks out. Especially since Sergeant Kwon had demanded for more severe punishments to be pressed against him.

 

In the end, it was really only thanks to Minhyun that he was able to get by without any major consequences towards his job.

 

“It was hard vouching for you,” The chief tells him when he calls Jihoon into his office, days after the incident with Grey, “The sergeant wanted you fired, Jihoon. He wanted you tried in a court and arrested.”

 

Jihoon is silent under Minhyun’s unreadable gaze.

 

“You know what you did was absolutely irresponsible and foolish, right?” He asks in a grave tone, “You’re an official inspector under the law. This isn’t a game. There are real life consequences for everything that you do and—”

 

“If you know that I did it—that I let Grey get away,” Jihoon quietly cuts him off, “Then why did you stick up for me?”

 

Minhyun sits back in his desk chair and crosses his arms, looking Jihoon over with careful eyes that makes the younger shift where he’s standing.

 

It’s a moment before Minhyun replies in a soft voice, “Because I know that you’re a fantastic inspector, Jihoon. Probably one of the best that’s ever came out of the academy.”

 

Jihoon looks up at the chief.

 

“You have good judgement, and have dealt with many other cases in the past justly and orderly. Sergeant Kwon doesn’t know you like I do, and I trust that your decision was a good one, even though I neither agree with it nor understand it.”

 

Jihoon doesn’t know what to say, just stands there, shocked.

 

“Grey’s case is an unusual one,” Minhyun hums with his lips pursed in discontent, “He breaks in and trespasses into high security areas, and somehow manages to steal things of great value. It’s a wonder how he does it, really. With that kind of intellect and cleverness, he could probably do so much more. Yet, he always returns everything after speaking with you and leaves... It’s strange just as much as it is perplexing; I feel like there’s more to this case than I will ever know, and that you’re not telling me everything in your reports.”

 

Jihoon flinches when the chief glances at him disapprovingly.

 

“ _But…_ I trust that there’s a good reason behind all of this. A logical one, hopefully,” Minhyun is quiet for a few long seconds before he continues, “I can tell, that even though you’re not officially on the case anymore, you’re still going to try and get to the bottom of this, right?”

 

Jihoon gulps, letting that all settle, before nodding hesitantly.

 

The chief sighs. “As much as I want to reprimand you for hiding things from me, I want to see this case closed even more than that.”

 

“Me too,” The inspector quickly agrees.

 

The response makes the corners of Minhyun’s mouth quirk into a small grin. “Ambitious as always,” He chuckles almost reminiscently, as he straightens out the files on his desk.

 

Jihoon blinks at him, “Pardon?”

 

“You know…” Minhyun pauses in thought before deciding to continue, “I specifically requested for you to be posted at my station when you graduated,” He suddenly confesses.

 

“R-Really?”

 

The chief nods. “You have that thing I look for in all my inspectors… but it shows the most in you.”

 

Jihoon straightens up, unused to hearing the chief talk about him like this, “What is it?”

 

“Passion,” He answers simply, “It’s in your eyes and shows in the way you work—it’s what stood out to me all those years ago and… it’s why I trust that you’ll be the one to figure out how to stop Grey.”

 

Jihoon feels something warm and determined swell in his chest as he soaks in everything that the chief has just told him. It reminds him of why he’s wanted to be an inspector all his life, and suddenly, he doesn’t feel worried anymore. Like he knows what he needs to do and how to bring everything to an end. “Thanks chief,” He says in a quiet, sincere voice.

 

Minhyun nods again, but this time with a pleased smile on his face. “You’re dismissed.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jihoon’s first week into his suspension goes by slowly since no field work basically translates to desk work _exclusively_ for hours _._ And it’s so horrible, Jihoon thinks he’s going to lose it.

 

Since he’s off the field, Jinyoung has been taking more cases under Minhyun’s supervision instead of his. Which doesn’t make anything better because without the rookie inspector around, the station is rather quiet and boring— _Jihoon really didn’t know how much he missed his annoying little underling until he was gone._

 

But being alone in the station—save for a few officers Jihoon doesn’t remember the names of, and doesn’t talk to enough to care—also has its perks. Mostly meaning that he can do whatever he wants and take breaks without Minhyun knowing. So, when he gets tired of his paperwork for the day, Jihoon takes a bit of time to dig deeper into the Grey case and sometimes, makes an occasional trip to his favorite coffee shop.

 

It’s the Wednesday after his official suspension when Jihoon finds the time to swing by, and there he sees Guanlin sitting in his normal booth, typing away at his laptop and drinking something chocolatey from a mug. He can tell that it’s chocolate because there’s a bit of it on his upper lip.

 

Jihoon takes a seat across from the other, watching him work and drinking his own latte. But Guanlin is completely engrossed with whatever he’s doing and doesn’t notice Jihoon for a few moments.

 

The younger double-takes once he looks up from his laptop for the first time. “J-Jihoon?” Guanlin chokes on his drink.

 

His face turns red and somehow, grows impossibly redder when Jihoon gestures to his mouth amusedly, “You’ve got something …” He hums.

 

“O-Oh,” Guanlin replies, bashfully looking away to clean himself up and adjusting his glasses, “Sorry…”

 

“It’s no problem,” Jihoon snickers, because finds himself more endeared by the other than anything, “What were you doing? I sat here for almost five minutes before you noticed me.”

 

“School work… I guess I got carried away,” He scratches the back of his neck.

 

“You seemed to be enjoying yourself.”

 

Guanlin nods enthusiastically.

 

It’s quiet for a few comfortable moments before the younger speaks up again, “I haven’t seen you here in a while. Have you been busy?”

 

Jihoon sighs with a sad smile on his face, “I got suspended from field work, so I have a lot of time on my hands.”

 

Guanlin’s expression drops completely, and he looks more devastated by the news than Jihoon was expecting him to be, “Y-You got suspended?”

 

Jihoon nods.

 

“Why? For how long??”

 

“It’s just two months,” The inspector tries to console him, but Guanlin still looks extremely distressed. “Don’t look like that, Guanlin, I’ll be fine. Besides, I brought this on myself.”

 

The younger’s shoulders slump, “But… you love your job… I—”

 

Jihoon rolls his eyes and flicks him on the forehead, “Stop being so mopey. I’m glad that you’re concerned, but I’m over it, you baby. And it’s not like it’s your fault anyway.”

 

Guanlin still doesn’t look convinced and actually, seems a bit sadder.

 

“Look,” The elder says, offering him a smile, “You’re right. I do love my job, which is why I’ll be doing it for the rest of my life. A two-month suspension from field work is nothing in grand scheme of things, there’s no reason for you to be so upset for me.”

 

“I… guess…”

 

Jihoon sighs again, turning to the window to watch the rain. “If it’s any comfort to you, I don’t regret what I did to earn my suspension,” He adds quietly.

 

He can feel Guanlin looking at him now.

 

“Even though I got in trouble for it,” Jihoon hums in thought, “I think what I did was the right thing to do.”

 

“Really?”

 

The inspector nods.

 

“How come?”

 

“I don’t really know,” Jihoon replies pensively, “The law is… strange, if you think about it. We claim that there’s a right and a wrong to everything, when in reality, there’s a little gray area in between that tends to get looked over. As an inspector, it’s our job to look at cases with the mentality that there’s someone who is right and someone who is wrong, and decide where they stand on each side of the spectrum based on written rules. But I think I’ve come to realize recently, that there’s more to this job than just that, and that these rules aren’t as perfect as people uphold them to be. It’s still my job to investigate crimes and carry out these laws but… it’s also my job to dig as deep as I can in order to bring justice to everyone—like you told me a few weeks ago. And even though I’ll have to pay for it for now, I think my decision was what was just for everyone.”

 

Guanlin blinks at him for a bit as they let that sit, and Jihoon suddenly realizes what he’s done and holds his face in embarrassment.

 

“I’M SORRY,” He blurts out, “I didn’t mean to go on a tangent like that, you’re probably so lost and I’m sure you didn’t want to hear any of that I—”

 

“No! It’s fine, really!” Guanlin assures him, “I just… You really are an admirable officer, Jihoon…”

 

Jihoon perks at the phrase and studies the other for a bit.

 

Guanlin clears his throat. “I’m sorry if I was being intrusive though,” He apologizes bashfully.

 

Jihoon snorts, “No, it’s okay. Actually, I think I feel more certain of myself talking about it with someone. Thanks for always listening to me.”

 

The younger smiles, “It’s my pleasure.”

 

Afterwards, they talk for a bit. Jihoon discovers that he enjoys Guanlin’s presence the more he speaks to him.

 

He’s comfortable and warm, and Jihoon likes how peaceful he feels around him.

 

But when they stand to leave the café together, Jihoon gets that strange sense of familiarity again, and a certain phrase he’s heard before repeats in his head as he watches Guanlin walk in the opposite direction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jihoon is at the station working overtime one night when they receive news that Grey has broken into a museum.

 

But he actually doesn’t know what all the commotion is about until he flags down Jinyoung who is gathering files from his desk in a hurry.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

“It’s Grey again,” Jinyoung tells him without looking up, “He’s back.”

 

Jihoon feels his heart sink, like he’s failed somehow. “Oh…”

 

The younger inspector gives him a sympathetic look, “Sorry you couldn’t come, I know it’s your case and all…”

 

 “It’s not that,” Jihoon says quietly with his lips pursed. He tries to look a bit more enthusiastic for the other’s sake, but his voice still comes out a bit flat when he adds, “Good luck. And, uh… punch Grey in the face for me when you see him, yeah?”

 

Jinyoung snickers. “Sure thing, boss.”

 

He then watches as the other runs off after the chief, who leaves out the door with more than half of the police officers in the station. A few minutes later, Jihoon is alone, and it’s only then that he lets his shoulders sag.

 

He returns back to his desk to continue with his work, but he can’t seem to concentrate and turns on his computer to find a live broadcast of what’s going down at the scene of the crime.

 

It looks just like it always does; dozens of officers positioned at every entrance, spotlights and helicopters sweeping around the perimeter. The newscaster mentions something about how he’s been taken off the case, but Jihoon doesn’t pay much attention to what she’s saying other than that Grey has stolen part of a headpiece belonging to an ancient queen.

 

He scans as much as the camera will let him see, and Jihoon figures that both Minhyun and Jinyoung are inside the building since they aren’t standing outside. And from the few officers that he doesn’t quite recognize, the sergeant must be at the scene too.

 

Half an hour passes, and nothing new arises. Jihoon actually finishes up his work in the meantime and watches the broadcast for a bit longer before standing up from his desk to put on his coat. It’s getting late, and Jihoon tells himself that he won’t be missing much on his way home from the station. So he turns off his computer and collects his belongings.

 

When Jihoon steps out into the chilly night, he can actually see the museum all lit up from where he’s standing and hear the sound of the helicopters whirring in the distance. When he looks up, a drop of rain falls on his cheek, and he idly things to himself amongst other mundane things, ‘ _It’s been raining a lot recently,’_ as he begins to walk down the sidewalk.

There’s a sense of emptiness when he finally takes a seat at his bus stop. He should be at the site, trying to stop Grey—trying to figure out what’s going on in that stupid thief’s head. But instead, he’s sitting here. And it suddenly feels like all his efforts have gone to waste.

 

The rain is coming down in big, heavy drops now. It hits the metal roof of the bus stop so loudly that Jihoon doesn’t hear when a person walks by and sits down on the bench right next to him, placing something on top of his head.

 

Jihoon flinches up straight and takes the item from his head to inspect it. He’s shocked when he discovers that it’s a diamond and ruby headpiece, set in polished gold—and he’s even more shocked when he turns to find Grey sitting back in his chair with his hands in his pockets, looking straight ahead.

 

“What are you doing here?” Jihoon breathes after a few silent moments.

 

Grey is quiet before his lips quirk into a small smile, “It got boring in the museum without you there.”

 

Jihoon slams his fist into Grey’s arm and the thief finally turns to him with a hurt look on face, “OW??”

 

“ARE YOU AN IDIOT?” The inspector yells, shoving the headpiece back into Grey’s hands, “RETURN THIS RIGHT NOW.”

 

“You act like I haven’t stolen anything before—”

 

“BECAUSE YOU HAVEN’T, GREY. YOU’VE NEVER LEFT THE PREMISIS WITH ANYTHING YOU’VE TAKEN IN THE PAST.”

 

Grey looks at him from behind his mask but doesn’t say anything.

 

“When is this going to stop?” Jihoon asks wearily, “I thought… last time I finally got to you, that you realized how stupid and dangerous this is. Grey, I can’t do anything else for you anymore… you know that, right? If you’re caught, you won’t stand a chance in court. Everyone thinks that you’re a criminal…”

 

“Then why don’t you?”

 

Jihoon is taken aback by the question and just blinks at the other for a few long seconds, letting the rain fill their silence.

 

 Grey laughs to himself, “You’ve always been like that…”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

The thief looks to the empty street again. “You’ve always had a strong sense of justice—a strong will to do what’s right no matter who for.”

 

Jihoon gazes at Grey quietly, as if he looked hard enough, he’d be able to see through his mask and recognize a face—someone he knew from his past.

 

“I don’t come from a good family,” Grey starts, “I was alone a lot of my childhood—practically invisible to everyone. Even now, kind of. My parents were never really home, so I never stayed there too. I wandered around the streets after school and got into trouble sometimes… never on purpose, though. But I guess that’s where my knack for escaping comes from,” He smiles sadly to himself.

 

“I was in the third grade when we met… A group of older kids from my school decided to gang up on me for no reason other than that I was always alone, and that I was too quiet—never responded to them. But before they could hurt me too bad, you came in and saved me; saying things like how you wanted to be an inspector when you grew up and help people like me—that I was going to be okay now that you were here,” Grey tells him, eyes turning warm at the memory, “You were my idol, and I looked up to you… But to you, I was just another face that you met—another person that you helped.

 

“I didn’t think that I’d ever see you again after that, but it was just my luck that I wandered into the library one day when I was walking around on the streets. I started spending a lot of time in there because it was a whole lot better than staying at home or winding through alleys all day. Coincidentally, there, I saw you again. Returning a book one evening before closing. I didn’t say anything though, just… watched as you picked out another book and checked it out. Out of curiosity, I checked out the same book that you returned, and I guess… that’s when I started falling for you.”

 

Jihoon sucks in a breath.

 

“You really loved mystery novels,” Grey laughs reminiscently, “All different kinds… I started to love them too. Every time you’d come in, I found myself watching you from behind bookshelves and checking out everything that you’d return. You were something I looked forward to every day—a little happiness in my life. Sometimes, on my more confident days, I’d choose a seat in the library that was close to yours and read with you. It took until about a year or two when I started noticing you outside of the library, and from then I got to admire you in different settings—quietly help you out without you noticing,” Grey snickers, “Like, one time, I heard your stomach growl, so I dropped a juice box off at your usual spot at the park—and another time, you’d forgotten your umbrella at school so I left mine on a bench you’d be able to pass by and take… That’s also when I found out why I’d never seen you at school… you were older than me. By a few years, actually.”

 

The inspector quirks his head to the side at this tidbit of information. He never considered Grey to be younger than him…

 

“We didn’t get to attend the same school until high school, and even then, it didn’t really make a difference; It was your last year and it was my first. It took until the end of the year until I finally gathered the courage to say something to you—that I admired you, _liked you_ so much that I couldn’t take it. But… you didn’t recognize me. And regrettably, I had only myself to blame for that,” Grey laughs wryly to himself, “It was then that hit me… I was nothing to the world. To my parents, to you, and everyone… I didn’t know what to do with myself after that, and I realized that amongst other things, that I didn’t have anything to live for.”

 

Jihoon finds himself staring at his hands now, his head swimming with everything he’s just been told.

 

Grey speaks up again, voice barely audible above the rain, “That night two years ago, when you caught me inside of that local bank… I actually intended to steal everything that day.”

 

Jihoon turns to him.

 

“We’ll just leave it at… I wasn’t in a very good place at the time,” Grey sighs, “It was years after I last saw you in high school, and seeing you again… really did a number on my feelings.

 

“You were like, a light to me, I suppose... A spark of clarity in my life, both back when I was younger and at the current time. All of my emotions over the years that I locked behind me came flooding back, and I thought that asking you for a kiss would be worth more than anything the money could buy. And, as stupid and childish as it sounds… kissing you was everything.”

 

Jihoon silently gazes at the other.

 

“There’s more to that story… but for now, I think I should get going,” Grey tells him.

 

Jihoon doesn’t know what to say, and just gapes at him. He wants to address his confession, but at the same time, Jihoon has countless of things he wants to ask and duties he has to uphold. He panics on the inside when Grey stands up.

 

“This is goodbye,” The thief mentions quietly.

 

“Y-You’re going?” Jihoon asks.

 

“Yes. For good.”

 

Those three words hit the inspector like a brick wall, and he just gazes up at the other, dumfounded—not fully grasping that this was it. That, Grey was saying goodbye forever after everything they’ve been through.

 

Jihoon’s head is still clouded with thoughts that he still needs to digest and fully interpret. But, despite everything, he stand up too; rising up onto his toes to give Grey a final kiss.

 

“What was that for?” The thief murmurs when Jihoon draws away, “I was going to return the headpiece regardless if you kissed me or not.”

 

“I guess… it just felt right,” Jihoon says with his heart beating rapidly and at the same time, twisting in his chest, “Goodbye, Grey, and… I’m sorry.”

 

“Don’t be sorry, there’s no reason for you to be,” Grey laughs under his breath, “If anything… Thank you.”

 

Jihoon watches as Grey gives him one last smile before he walks away. And it’s then that Jihoon realizes that… he didn’t even try to remove his mask.

 

“I’ll figure out who you are, Grey—” Jihoon calls after him, causing the other to stop in his tracks, “You’re not off the hook yet.”

 

Grey turns around to address him, and the expression on his face almost looks… satisfied with that statement. “I’ll be waiting for you, Inspector,” He calls back, before turning a corner and disappearing into the night.

 

When he leaves, Jihoon feels inexplicably empty. As if he’s not content with how things turned out between the two of them.

 

Jihoon’s bus comes around a few minutes later, and he numbly climbs aboard with his ears still ringing and his mind in shambles.

 

He looks out the window at where he and Grey just were—it looks so surreal to him now.

 

It only finally hits him when the driver is pulling away that… this was the very last time Jihoon will ever see Grey again.

 

And for some reason, Jihoon finds that it hurts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fall turns into winter, and winter turns into spring.

 

Grey never shows up as promised, and after months of searching, his case file is ultimately left open— _unsolved_.

 

Sometimes, Jihoon thinks about him amidst all the other cases he takes as the weeks go by, and sometimes, he’ll pause to look through his file, wondering what’s become of the other.

 

But one day, he just… stops. And he tells himself that it’s time to move on.

 

Grey is never mentioned again after that, and he becomes nothing but an occasional side-thought to the inspector.

 

Jihoon doesn’t expect to ever hear of the other ever again, until it happens a few months later when he’s least expecting it…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a beautiful Spring day when Jihoon walks into his favorite café and takes a seat in the booth in the back corner of the shop.

 

He takes a sip from his vanilla latte as he stares out the window; watching the flower petals from the trees get carried away with a breeze that blows throughout the city.

 

Jihoon sits alone these days. But… it’s been like that for a while now.

 

He doesn’t quite remember exactly when Guanlin stopped showing up to the café, but it’s been such a long time, Jihoon doesn’t really think too much about it anymore.

 

It was a bit upsetting at first when he realized that Guanlin was never going to show. But he figures that maybe the student had college duties to take care of and couldn’t visit as much. Or that maybe, their schedules just weren’t lining up any longer.

 

It dawns on him some time later that he didn’t really know Guanlin as much as he’d liked, and he kind of regrets never asking the other more about himself during the few meetings they had together. They never even had the chance to exchange phone numbers…

 

But life happens and people leave, whether if Jihoon likes it or not.

 

Yet, no matter how hard he tries to move on too, Jihoon still feels like a part of himself stuck. Not just with Guanlin, but with a certain thief that looms in the back of his mind.

_“It’s been exactly six months since the last reported Grey robbery,”_ A broadcaster suddenly says on the television, earning the attention of a few customers and a particular inspector who rips his gaze away from the window to watch the newscast with wide eyes, _“At 11:35 PM, officials caught sight of him trespassing into the national museum. There, he took and later, returned what we were informed to be a historical headpiece belonging to a queen from the Goryeo dynasty. Although there has been no word from the infamous thief since then, the public still has many concerns regarding him and what this means for our local police force. It’s been half a year since his disappearance, but one question still remains: Who was Grey?”_

Jihoon gazes at the screen in shock, staring mutedly at the blurred picture of the thief he hadn’t seen in months. The coincidence is almost unreal to him, and Jihoon still doesn’t think that he’s hearing her right until she ends the segment quickly.

 

 _“Up next…”_ The broadcaster trails off, but Jihoon tunes her out since all he can hear are her last few words repeat over and over again in his head; _‘who was Grey?’_

 

It washes over him like a bucket of cold water. Everything comes back in a snap and Jihoon is

 overwhelmed to the point where he just feels empty again.

 

Even after all these months, Jihoon still has that sense that… he never received proper closure with the other. That, he never heard the rest of his story and hadn’t really thought about it since then.

 

When he walks back to the station, Jihoon is lost in his thoughts. He sees himself sitting at the bus stop six months ago again, talking to Grey and listening to him—recalling everything as if it were yesterday.

 

It makes something twist in his chest. It’s a sensation he’s come to be familiar with, but has learned to ignore with time.

 

The case is dead in the eyes of his higher ups, but… Jihoon still has so many questions that he suddenly wants answered again. He’s just conflicted because there’s no point for him to dig the case back up other than to sate his own curiosity and end this incessant feeling of emptiness—like, he's still missing something and has been for quite some time now.

 

Jihoon sits in his office and gets back to work, but he’s so distracted by everything floating around in his head, he doesn’t even realize that Jinyoung has walked in until the other takes a seat on his desk.

 

“You look troubled,” Jinyoung offhandedly mentions.

 

His voice startles Jihoon because one, he wasn’t expecting the other, and two, because Jinyoung hasn’t really been in the station much recently.

 

During the past six months, the younger has become a fine inspector—almost better than himself—and the chief admires him a lot for it. He’s been taking on many back to back cases and has been accomplishing more than most inspectors would in a year. Jihoon takes a bit of pride in the fact that he was his overseer for some time, but that still doesn’t mean Jinyoung is any less annoying than he usually is.

 

“Stop it. Distressed isn’t a very good look on you,” The younger adds with a snort, “If you keep furrowing your brows, you’ll get permanent lines on your forehead and nobody wants to look at that.”

 

“What do you want, Jinyoung,” Jihoon sighs.

 

“Nothing. You just stomped by my cubicle, so I thought I’d come over to see what’s up. It’s not every day that you come back from your beloved coffee break all shaken up like that,” Jinyoung replies, swinging his feet on the desk now, “But… I have a pretty good guess as to why.”

 

Jihoon exhales tiredly and sits back in his chair, “Let’s hear it.”

 

“You saw the segment on Grey too, didn’t you?”

 

Jihoon snorts bitterly.

 

“Figured.”

 

It’s quiet between the two of them for a while, before Jinyoung speaks up again.

 

“What a weird criminal…” He muses.

 

Weird? Maybe… But a criminal? Not entirely true.

 

Jihoon finds himself feeling like he did six months ago, after listening to Grey’s confession. He wracked his brain for hours, trying to think of who he could possibly be—but, no one came to mind. He wanted to figure out who he was, but wasn’t given enough hints to go about his search.

 

As frustrating as it was, Jihoon found himself almost… flattered by the thief. Grey had admired him so greatly, and Jihoon had affected his life in a positive way.

 

It made him want to uncover his identity even more.

 

“Do you ever wonder who he could have been?” Jinyoung asks.

 

“Of course I have.”

 

“Did he ever leave you any hints?”

 

“No.”

 

Jinyoung laughs at this, “Nothing? Come on, you guys spent so much time alone together. He had to have left something if he liked getting to you _that_ much.”

 

Jihoon thinks.

 

“I was always curious about that… why he always sought you out over everyone. Is there something you’re hiding, Jihoon?” The younger inspector teases, “Maybe now that he’s done looking for you, it’s your turn to go find him.”

 

Even though Jinyoung wasn’t being serious, it makes Jihoon wonder… that maybe, Grey did want to be found. And he suddenly thinks back to Grey’s final words, still crystal clear in his head even through the sound of the raindrops that poured down on them that cold, autumn night: _“I’ll be waiting for you, Inspector.”_

 

Maybe, Grey did want Jihoon to find him.

 

“You know what, Jinyoung?”

 

“Hm?”

 

“You’re not entirely stupid.”

 

“Hey—” The other pouts and slaps him on the arm, “I never was in the first place.”

 

Jihoon ignores him. “I think… Grey did leave me a hint.”

 

After his shift, Jihoon walks down to the public library where he used to spend parts of his childhood with his nose buried in mystery novels that made him want to become an inspector.

 

Jihoon picks out a few of his favorites; they tended to be the ones with the most crime fighting, he thinks to himself with a laugh.

 

He then goes to a familiar table and opens them up, pulling out the record logs at the end of each book that lists every person who’s checked it out.

 

Jihoon is surprised to see the name that shows up under his.

 

He’s so surprised, that he checks every other book that he’s grabbed, and stands up to look through even more.

 

But regardless if he wants to believe it or not, they all say the same exact name:

_Guanlin._

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It all makes sense to him now.

 

Jihoon doesn’t even know how he waits an entire day before conducting a final search.

 

The night before, he doesn’t sleep. And instead, he pieces together everything over and over again with his heart racing because everything just seems so clear—like, this was everything he’s been missing.

 

He still doesn’t know how he feels about Grey being Guanlin. But he knows that he has to see the other again.

 

Jihoon finds himself running to the café before his shift starts and staring through the window; trying to see if he can catch a glimpse of the other. But it’s useless.

 

Jihoon runs to the station and doesn’t even check his workload for the day, only diving into his chair and loading up his computer to search through their database for a certain _Guanlin._ But he’s presented with a long list of people and Jihoon realizes then that he doesn’t even know his last name.

 

His heart sinks into his gut.

 

_He needs to find the other. Now._

 

Jihoon is clicking through names and names of registered Guanlins when Jinyoung loudly enters into his office, “What’s got you so excited, boss? I’ve never seen you run that fast in my life. Or in general.”

 

Jihoon stands up in frustration and begins to pace around his office, “I have to find a Guanlin.”

 

“A Guanlin?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Why?”

 

“BECAUSE I HAVE TO—” Jihoon snaps, and suddenly, he remembers that Grey had mentioned that they went to the same high school for one year. _Guanlin’s last name could be in one of his yearbooks._ He’s about to take off out of the station—and he’s already walking down the hallway when Jinyoung grabs him by the arm and stops him.

 

“I know a Guanlin,” He mentions.

 

“Y-You do??”

 

“Yeah, Lai Guanlin?” Jinyoung nods, “Everyone knows him. He’s practically the smartest kid at the police academy right now.”

 

Jihoon’s mouth parts in shock.

 

“Well… maybe you don’t know him because you graduated before he enrolled. But he’s really nice! Nobody really knows where he came from, but when he entered into the program, he was able to skip a year because he was _that good,”_ Jinyoung says, “I used to see him at the coffee shop a lot, actually. We were good friends back at the academy, so we talked whenever we could, but I haven’t seen him around since then.”

 

“He’s… studying to become an officer?” Jihoon unconsciously asks.

 

“Yeah? An inspector, actually. He wants to specialize more in the information gathering part of it or something,” Jinyoung explains, looking over the other confusedly, “Why are you so surprised? Do you know him?”

 

But instead of answering his question, Jihoon practically explodes with happiness and hugs the life out of him. “THANK YOU, JINYOUNG. GOD, YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS TO ME I OWE YOU LUNCH OR SOMETHING WHEN I COME BACK, I PROMISE—” He yells as he runs off, leaving Jinyoung shocked over what just happened.

 

Jihoon is so ecstatic, that he doesn’t even realize that the chief walks by at that very moment, and drops his coffee cup upon seeing the exchange.

 

Jihoon doesn’t even clock out for a break, too. Which will probably get him in trouble later, but for now, he has to get to the police academy. _Fast._

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He hasn’t been to the academy in more than two years, but Jihoon still knows exactly where every hall leads and how to find each building.

 

At first, the inspector doesn’t know where he should start looking for the other. _He could be in class for all he knows._ But, it’s then that Jihoon recalls Grey mentioning that he found security inside of libraries—so he figures he should try looking there.

 

As Jihoon walks through the halls, he’s greeted by many aspiring officers and inspectors who bow to him politely when he passes by, but none of them turn out to be Guanlin.

 

However, it doesn’t take long until he’s standing inside a familiar library. Jihoon doesn’t even have to look hard for the tall student, instantly finding him sitting at one of the tables, typing away at his laptop.

 

Suddenly, Jihoon feels anxious. And all he can do for a while is just stare at the other breathlessly.

 

His feet move on their own, though, and soon enough, he’s sitting across the table from Guanlin who looks up at him from behind his thick-framed glasses.

 

Guanlin looks surprised to see him, but after a moment, he relaxes and smiles sadly at Jihoon, “Have I been caught?” He whispers.

 

“You’re… Grey,” Jihoon breathes in response. It feels weird to say—and even weirder to hear coming out of his mouth.

 

Guanlin doesn’t claim or deny it though, just continues to look at Jihoon softly.

 

And Jihoon doesn’t know what to say in return because all he feels is overwhelmed.

 

“Are you going to arrest me now?” Guanlin finally asks, breaking their silence.

 

Jihoon lets his expression fall serious. “I want to hear the rest of your story first.”

 

Guanlin nods at the simple request, before closing his laptop and sliding it into his messenger bag. He stands up to put on his coat, and looks to the other who is still sitting down, “Shall we then?”

 

Jihoon nods.

 

Eventually, they arrive at a park near campus, and the two of them take a seat on the swings. It’s some time before noon, so there aren’t any children out playing, and the sun shines down on them from the clear blue sky. The last time Jihoon saw Guanlin, it was autumn. And he idly thinks that he almost looks different somehow; seeing Guanlin for the first time in the spring. Like he’s changed… in a good way.

 

“So… Where do I begin?” Guanlin muses.

 

“Anywhere,” Jihoon responds quietly, “We’ve got time.”

 

“Alright then,” The other hums, thinking to himself for a moment, “Is it… off topic to say that I’ve missed seeing you?”

 

Jihoon looks to his feet with his heart pounding in his throat, “Not really. Now that I really think about it… I think I’ve missed seeing you too.”

 

Guanlin smiles, “Is that so?”

 

“God, you really are Grey,” The inspector cringes, looking at Guanlin’s pleased little grin. It makes the other chuckle. “I still can’t believe it. You’re so sweet and shy, but Grey is so annoying and… _ugh._ ”

 

“Sorry for giving you such a rough time,” Guanlin apologizes, timidly scratching the back of his neck, “But… if it makes anything better, me getting to be Grey is the only reason I’m where I am today.”

 

Jihoon silently turns to the other to listen.

 

“I guess I did overdo it, though,” Guanlin starts, “I didn’t really have a reason to keep being Grey once I entered the police academy about a year ago—other than that I wanted to see you more. It became more of a destressing thing for me, rather than what I initially started robbing for.”

 

Jihoon nods at him to keep going, and Guanlin sighs wryly.

 

“As I mentioned, my parents and I moved to Korea from Taiwan when I was in elementary school, but shortly after that, my mom got sick,” Guanlin tells him, now pushing himself lightly on the swings, “My dad had a company in Taiwan, so he was always jumping back and forth between the two countries. But for the most part, he stayed in Taiwan. When my mom started getting really sick, he took her back one day, and I was left alone in Korea to take care of myself for weeks at a time. That’s when I started wandering around more, getting into unwanted trouble—that is—until a year or two after that, when I met you.

 

“I didn’t really have anyone I could look up to in my life, but you noticed me when no one else did and you helped me out when I got hurt… at the time, it was everything to me,” Guanlin smiles sadly, “I never had the confidence to talk to you, but I figured that admiring you from afar was as good as it was going to get. That, just getting to watch you help other kids and go on about how you wanted to be an inspector when you grew up was good enough.

 

“I wanted to be just like you back then. I thought you were so cool, like a superhero,” Guanlin laughs, which makes Jihoon look away all red and flustered. “But other than getting to watch you, things hadn’t been going all too well at home. As I grew older, my dad stopped visiting monthly and would only drop by maybe three times a year. I found out my mom died in middle school—but I never really got to know her, so thankfully, it didn’t hurt too much… I guess.

 

“During high school, I lost contact with my dad, and you were the last thing that I looked forward to every single day,” Guanlin says with a wistful sigh, “Turns out, I was never anyone to you. And for some reason, that hurt more than both of my parents forgetting about me. I was so upset, I… stopped seeking you out. I never saw you again.

 

“I graduated high school with good grades and high honors, but I didn’t know what I wanted to do with myself—everything back then seemed so bland to me. I had a lot of debt since I wasn’t working, and I couldn’t afford to go to college. And... after about a year of doing nothing, I decided to try and rob a bank. That’s when I met you again.”

 

Jihoon perks up at this.

 

“I took a lot of coding classes and studied a lot in my free time during high school; it was so easy to get past security, it’s almost _hilarious_ thinking back on it _,”_ Guanlin snorts, which earns him a reprimanding smack from the other. “Sorry.”

 

It’s quiet between them for a few moments before Jihoon exhales loudly through his nose. “And then what happened?”

 

“And then… it’s just how both you and I remember it,” Guanlin continues, “Seeing you again was almost like a dream. You were a spark of hope to me, and I figured that, with my mask on, I finally had the confidence to ask you to kiss me.

 

“I actually planned to steal the second, third, and fourth time that you caught me. But every time I tried to get away, you showed up. _I couldn’t get enough of your attention._ Eventually, it became a reason for me to keep trying to live,” Guanlin says, “Seeing you again and reading about you in the newspapers made me want to follow in your footsteps again. I wanted more than anything to become an inspector because of you, even back then, when I would watch you from afar and pick up your returned novels. Even though I was homeless for some time, I took out loans and easily passed all of my entrance exams. I was able to get ahead in the academy at an accelerated rate too.

 

“I’m still not in a very good situation, but I’m doing a lot better,” Guanlin nods proudly, “I paid off my parent’s apartment and I have a few side-jobs now. For a while, I also kept getting to see you as Grey—you became my escape from the real world and… I loved every second of it.

 

“Really, I owe everything good that became of me to you,” Guanlin admits, “I’ve seen kids who grew up like me turn to violence and whatnot. But you… inspired me to want to do better. And now I’m here thanks to you.”

 

They let that sit between the two of them for a while, and Jihoon takes a bit of time to digest everything he’s been told.

 

But Guanlin is patient. He just swings calmly, looking up at the sky as Jihoon thinks.

 

It’s about twenty minutes after Guanlin’s story when Jihoon finally knows what he wants to do.

 

“That… was a lot to take in,” He says, which earns him a laugh.

 

“Sorry about that,” Guanlin replies. It’s quiet again before he asks, “So… what do you plan on doing with me?”

 

Jihoon exhales deeply. “Your case is still open, you know. You’re still a wanted criminal.”

 

A flicker of sadness crosses Guanlin’s eyes, and his shoulders sag. He nods slowly, ready to accept his fate, “I suppose so…”

 

 _“But…”_ Jihoon sighs, “I guess it’ll just have to stay open.”

 

Guanlin startles upon hearing this, and looks to Jihoon with wide eyes, “Wha—”

 

“BUT,” Jihoon cuts him off loudly, standing up from his swings to get in Guanlin’s face and point at him, “I have a few conditions you’ll have to meet or else I’m turning you in _no questions asked.”_

 

Guanlin blinks at him, winded, but nods shakily.

 

“First: You have to promise me that you’ll never do ANYTHING like that again,” Jihoon says, “No more stealing, breaking and entering, etcetera, etcetera.”

 

Guanlin nods rapidly this time.

 

“SECOND,” Jihoon holds up two fingers, “I want you to finish up at the academy and become an inspector with me. When you graduate, I want you to come work under _my_ supervision so that I can keep an eye on you. Got it?”

 

A smile slowly spreads across Guanlin’s face, “That’s hardly a bad condition—”

 

 _“I’m not done talking!”_ Jihoon cuts him off, now holding up a third finger. But for some reason, he finds himself biting back a grin too, “Third, I want you to start coming back to the café and start talking to me.”

 

Guanlin looks shocked to hear this, and his ears gradually turn a bright shade of red.

 

“Even though I can’t return your feelings right now, Guanlin, everything that you’ve told me means a lot. Truly. And… I want to start fresh with you,” Jihoon proposes, “Maybe, if things work out later _… we’ll see._ But for now, let’s be friends. _”_

 

The other raises a brow challengingly, and Jihoon rolls his eyes in response.

 

“Stop doing that. Your future is literally in my hands right now,” He snaps.

 

“I’m sorry I’m just…” Guanlin trails off with a deep exhale. He looks at Jihoon, and then to his feet, trying to hide his growing smile, “This is probably one of happiest days of my life... Thank you.”

 

Jihoon feels his heart swell with endearment with how genuine the other looks right now.

 

“Then don’t let me down, okay?”

 

“I won’t.”

 

They sit on the swings a little while longer, and just… talk. About everything.

 

They catch each other up with what’s been going on during the past six months they haven’t seen each other and it makes Guanlin so excited, Jihoon thinks that he might already have a crush.

 

After a few hours pass, they stand up to leave together. But just as they’re about to head their separate ways, Jihoon stops Guanlin.

 

“You have to promise me that you’ll uphold all of our conditions, alright?”

 

“Of course,” Guanlin smiles with his eyes glimmering. “I promise.”

 

The sight makes Jihoon’s heart flutter.

 

“I need more of an affirmation than just that,” The inspector sighs, rolling his eyes for affect.

 

Guanlin quirks his head to the side in confusion.

 

“I want you to seal our deal with a kiss,” Jihoon smirks and taps his finger to his lips.

 

The taller turns all kinds of red and he blinks owl-eyed at Jihoon, “Wh-WHAT?”

 

The response somehow makes Jihoon like Guanlin impossibly more—he isn’t going to last very long at this rate. “What’s the problem?” The inspector snickers, “Are you backing out on me now?”

 

“N-No!!” Guanlin stammers, “I-It’s just unexpected. I-I mean, aren’t you tired of kissing me?”

 

Jihoon rolls his eyes again. “I’m sick of kissing _Grey_. But… I’d really like to know how Guanlin kisses,” He hums.

 

The answer puts a shy smile on Guanlin’s face.

 

Even though his file stays open on his record, Jihoon is satisfied being the only person who knows the true story behind Grey’s case. And he figures, it’ll stay their secret forever.

 

Time goes by and with it, the infamous thief is eventually forgotten.

 

Jihoon and Guanlin meet up every day since then, and every time they part for the evening, Jihoon feels as though Guanlin steals bits of his heart— _it doesn’t take very long until he falls in love._

 

Amongst many other things that he learns about the other, Jihoon finds that kissing Guanlin is one of the sweetest things in the world.

 

And truthfully, Jihoon doesn’t think he’ll ever get enough of him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**[EPILOGUE]**

 

Two years later, Jihoon finds himself sitting on top of his office desk with a tie in his hands and Guanlin’s lips pressed softly against his.

 

He smiles against the other’s skin, and pulls on his tie harder so that Guanlin has to lean down and obediently continue to kiss him—just how Jihoon commanded him to as his official supervisor ( _and boyfriend)._

 

The elder inspector feels long fingers brush through his hair and cup the sides of his face, holding him still so that Guanlin can place gentle pecks to his red, bitten lips until a satisfied noise escapes from the back of Jihoon’s throat.

 

He presses up closer to the other, still pulling on his tie, and the action leaves Guanlin smiling over how greedy he’s getting. But as always, Guanlin gives the other what he wants; rubbing comfortable circles across the nape of Jihoon’s neck too, and trailing his hands down the curve of his spine.

 

It’s some time later when Guanlin suddenly snickers against Jihoon’s wet lips, giving him one last peck so that he can murmur, “The chief is going to get angry again…”

 

It takes a few seconds until Jihoon finds it in himself to part away, breathing out quickly, “I clocked out for a break, it’ll be fine,” before he tugs on the taller’s tie again and sighs contentedly when Guanlin gives in and kisses him.

 

Unfortunately, Minhyun barges in and Jihoon groans loudly over his voice when he says, “Can’t you guys take this outside of the station?? I know it’s technically your break, and I don’t care what you do. But this is strictly a workplace environment.”

 

Guanlin actually has the decency to look ashamed— _Jihoon thinks it cute._ The taller pulls away from where Jihoon is sitting on his desk to straighten out his uniform and bow apologetically, “Sorry chief.”

 

“What do you want?” Jihoon grumbles, jumping off his desk, “Do you have another case for me? Just leave it in my box and I’ll deal with it later.”

 

“Actually, it’s not that. I came to say goodbye,” Minhyun mentions, putting a hand on his hip expectantly, “I do hope that my official departure from this post is worth at least _a little_ of your time.”

 

Jihoon and Guanlin’s eyes widen at the sudden statement and they simultaneously yell, “WHAT??”

 

The chief nods, and Jihoon feels his heart sink. He figures that Guanlin is probably feeling the same way even though he’s only been working under the other for a little over a year. Minhyun was almost like a father figure to the both of them and Jihoon owes a lot to him.

 

“Wh-Where are you going??” Guanlin asks worriedly, walking up to Minhyun. “You’re not leaving forever, right? You’ll keep in touch?”

 

The chief laughs and ruffles the young inspector’s hair, “Don’t look so upset, Guanlin. I’m only moving a few blocks down. I got promoted.”

 

Jihoon walks up to him as well and gapes, “You’re going to be sergeant??”

 

“Yep,” Minhyun nods, “I got the news just yesterday. Sergeant Kwon is retiring and I’ve been chosen to take his position.”

 

“GOD BLESS—I HATED THAT GUY,” Jihoon cheers a bit too loudly. It earns him a reprimanding stare from the elder, but Jihoon doesn’t care. He looks to Guanlin who has a relieved expression on his face.

 

He also hated Sergeant Kwon for similar reasons to Jihoon’s, but also mostly because he tried to shoot him one time when he was Grey. Even though they laugh about it now, it’s still a rough subject and Guanlin still hasn’t forgiven the guy. _It’s understandable._

 

“Then… who’s going to be chief at this station?” Guanlin asks.

 

“The board hasn’t been decided yet,” Minhyun replies, but with a fond smile on his face, he adds, “Jinyoung has been doing quite well these days though. He’s been talking about how he’s wanted to be chief and I heard he sent in his application a few days ago. I think he’s definitely strong contender for the position, but… we’ll have to wait and see who gets chosen.”

 

A warm sense of pride fills Jihoon’s chest upon hearing this. Jinyoung really has come a long way since he joined the station, and he’s grown tremendously in the past few years.

 

Positions of authority never interested Jihoon much. But, he knows that with all the talent the younger has shown, he’d make a fine chief. Jihoon thinks that he definitely wouldn’t mind working under the younger, and he knows Guanlin feels that too.

 

“Well, I have to start packing up my stuff. I leave in a week,” Minhyun says quietly, “Try not to give the next chief too hard of a time, okay?”

 

“Yeah, yeah,” Jihoon responds.

 

“You know that means—” The chief vaguely gestures to the both of them _“—this.”_

 

“I know what you mean,” Jihoon rolls his eyes before heaving out a wistful sigh, “I’ll miss you, chief.”

 

“I’ll miss you too, kid,” Minhyun smiles, eyes twinkling with a mixture of warmth and sadness.

 

It reminds him of everything that they’ve been to together; Minhyun as his boss and Jihoon as his first hired inspector.

 

“Stop looking at me like that. You’re going to make me cry,” Jihoon huffs, crossing his arms, “I’m going to throw you a going-away party in the office.”

 

Minhyun chuckles, “Not during work hours, please.”

 

“No promises.”

 

The chief gives Jihoon a tired smile when he realizes the younger won’t budge. So he accepts his defeat easily, saying “Alright, then,” before giving him an affectionate pat to the shoulder.

 

When he leaves his office, Jihoon walks over to his desk and takes a seat in his chair. “Well, that was upsetting,” the elder inspector sighs, “Minhyun really knows how to kill a moment.”

 

Guanlin snorts and leans up against the other’s desk. “If it makes you feel any better, we can continue later after we clock out for the day,” He suggests, which draws a smug grin from the elder.

 

“Sounds good.”

 

A lot of things have been changing in the station as of recently, mostly with Guanlin joining the team and now with Minhyun departing. Jinyoung has also been taking on bigger cases working harder than any inspector Jihoon has ever seen in his life. But it makes him happy seeing the younger so passionate to achieve bigger things.

 

“What are you thinking about?” Guanlin asks.

 

“A lot of things,” Jihoon replies, leaning back in his chair, “Times are changing, people are moving on…”

 

“We’ll still keep in touch with them.”

 

“I suppose you’re right,” Jihoon smiles at the younger, which causes the other bashfully shift where he’s standing.

 

Guanlin also has been changing and working hard to make a good name for himself in the police force. He’s an outstanding inspector—he’ll probably be better than Jihoon someday too.

 

Guanlin is quick minded and smart—he sees patterns in cases and solves problems quickly and efficiently. Even though Jihoon has him as an underling, he feels as though he’s learning a lot from the younger in many ways, also outside of work.

 

“How have you been?” Jihoon asks.

 

“Aside from a few troubling cases, pretty good,” Guanlin responds, thrumming his fingers on Jihoon’s desk, “I’ve almost paid off the last of my loans.”

 

“That’s good,” The elder inspector hums, “Have you been staying out of trouble?”

 

The question makes Guanlin laugh, “You act like you’re not _always_ with me. You practically live in my apartment these days—”

 

“I’m just asking for old times’ sake,” Jihoon grins and playfully nudges him on the knee, “And your apartment is closer to the station than mine is. That’s it.”

 

_“I’m sure.”_

 

Jihoon scoffs, but his expression is anything but offended.

 

He looks up at Guanlin softly and admires who he’s become. And Jihoon is happy to have been there to see it all happen.

 

“When I get the rest of my debts paid, do you want to move in with me?” Guanlin suddenly asks.

 

Jihoon’s answer is immediate. “God, I was wondering when you were going to ask,” He snickers, “I was starting to think that you weren’t ever going to get the hint.”

 

“Actually, I figured that was your plan a while ago,” Guanlin declares, crossing his arms.

 

“Oh really? What gave it away?”

 

“When you dumped all of your belongings inside my home for—” he makes quotes with his fingers _“—convenience sake.”_

 

“Ah, right,” Jihoon grins, pulling on his tie again, “Sorry about that.”

 

“You’re not sorry,” Guanlin snickers and places a chaste kiss to Jihoon’s waiting lips.

 

“You’re right. I’m not,” The inspector admits, “That’s what you get for making me chase you around for two whole years.”

 

“Then I guess that makes us even,” Guanlin smiles.

 

“I suppose it does.”

 

**[THE END]**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, when I finished this fic and proofread it the last time, I thought I’d be a bit more sentimental… but instead, I started cRACKING UP BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY PLOTHOLES SKDJFKSDFJSDKF LMAOOOOO /RIPS OFF MY FACE,, WHATEVER PANWINK KISSED AND FELL IN LOVE, THAT’S ALL WE’RE HERE FOR UWU UWU UWU <3
> 
> ANYWAY!!! THERE IT FUCKING IS AAAA WE DID IT YALL!! My SECOND completed multichapter EVER (even tho it was super-duper short in comparison to my other multi-chapters but WHATEVER) WHOOP!
> 
> ALSO, OOF did u guys know that oct 22 is my wRITING ANNIVERSARY!!!! I’VE BEEN WRITING FOR A YEAR NOW!!!! OMFG /CRIES INTO MY HANDS thank u so much to everyone who has been keeping up with me on this little journey! ;u; I never thought that I’d be okay at telling stories since I’ve never done anything like this until panwink, but it’s something that I quite like! I’ll work harder to put out better content because I know im still lacking very greatly as an author, but I hope u guys will stick around to watch me improve if I decide to continue!! UWU THANK U AGAIN!!! <3
> 
> SKLDFJSLDKFSD ANYWAYYYYSSSSS LMAO I hope that this was an enjoyable story *u* I…. don’t even know why I wrote it actually. Like, this is probably one of my most spontaneous fics I’ve ever done LMAO like I wrote up the outline and didn’t even consider that I HAVE LIKE 20 OTHER ONGOING FICS I SHOULD PROBABLY BE WORKING ON KSDLFJS I JUST WENT FOR IT but here we all are anyway ;u;
> 
> THANK U ALL FOR READING THIS SOFT, BABY POLICE OFFICER AU THOUGH!!!!!! FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, I SINCERELY AM SO GRATEFUL TO EVERYONE WHO’S KEPT UP WITH THIS FROM START TO FINISH!! ;u; it was a wildass ride, but it was lots of fun and im really grateful for the support u guys showed for it regardless!! *u* <333
> 
> THANK U AGAIN! <3 <3 <3 AND I’D LOVE TO HEAR UR THOUGHTS! ;u;  
> SEND ME KISSES IN EXCHANGE FOR FINISHING THIS SKDFJSFOEIJFKDWOIESDLFJKSDFIO >:)))  
> UWU
> 
> -coinseller  
> (twt @pocar1sweet / cc @coppercoin)


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